They are still 18th with the relegation zone eight points below them, as they failed to pull further clear in rubber-stamping another season of Championship football.
"At the start of both halves, we were poor and that's cost us the game today," he told BBC Radio London.
"We work every single week on starting fast and being front-footed and in the first 50 seconds, we mess about it and give a corner away and that sets the tone.
"It was a game we could have drawn or won in the end but we didn't show enough quality in the final third and some of our defending was so un-Charlton like, it was crazy.
"The start killed us. When we're in the game, we know we're going to be strong late on attacking that end, but we're not giving ourselves a chance.
"It's a carbon copy, the last few home games, we're not learning from that and that's tough to take."
Championship clubs spend more than £69m on agents feespublished at 17:15 BST 1 April
17:15 BST 1 April
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Ipswich signed Sindre Walle Egeli for a club record £17.5m in January
Championship clubs spent just over £69.5m on agents fees over the past 12 months according to figures released by the Football Association,, external an increase of £6m on the previous year.
The figures cover the period from February 2025 with Ipswich Town the top spenders, paying £11.7m having spent the first three months of the accounting period in the Premier League.
Southampton (£8.3m) and Leicester (£5.8m), who were relegated alongside Ipswich are the second and third-highest payers on the list.
Troubled Sheffield Wednesday were the most frugal when dealing with agents, spending £534,559.
Wrexham come in sixth on the list with an outlay of £3.6m while current Championship leaders Coventry spent just short of £1.5m.
Pick of the stats: Charlton Athletic v Bristol Citypublished at 12:35 BST 1 April
12:35 BST 1 April
Image source, Opta
Charlton Athletic will hope to take a major step towards Championship survival when they host struggling Bristol City on Friday (kick-off 15:00 BST).
The Addicks are on 48 points and nine clear of the relegation zone, with 50 points generally considered the magic number needed to stay up in the second tier.
Nathan Jones' side are without a win in their past two games (D1 L1) since winning two on the bounce against Birmingham and Middlesbrough.
The Robins' play-off ambitions have deteriorated after five games without a win (L4) and just one victory from their past eight. They have slipped from eighth and within a point of the top six to 16th and 12 points adrift on that run.
It is that recent form which prompted the City hierarchy to sack head coach Gerhard Struber and place Roy Hodgson in caretaker charge of the club he managed in 1982 until the end of this season.
Charlton have alternated between defeat (2) and victory (2) in their previous four home league games against Bristol City, with this the first time they've hosted them since a 3-2 win on Boxing Day 2019.
Bristol City have lost just one of their past five league games against Charlton (W2 D2), going down 3-2 at the Valley in December 2019.
Charlton have lost four of their nine home league games in 2026 (W3 D2), one more than they did in 22 at the Valley in 2025 (W15 D4 L3).
So far in 2026, only already relegated Sheffield Wednesday (10) have failed to score in more different Championship games than Bristol City (8).
Charlton have had more different substitutes score for them in the Championship this season than any other side (9), while only Ipswich (17) have had more sub goals overall than the Addicks (13).
Dykes aims to finish season on high with Charlton and Scotlandpublished at 13:04 BST 29 March
13:04 BST 29 March
Image source, SNS
Image caption,
Lyndon Dykes (left) found it difficult to fashion chances against Japan
Lyndon Dykes believes he has achieved his goal of enhancing his World Cup chances and improving Charlton Athletic as a team after signing from Championship rivals Birmingham City in January.
The London side might have only moved up one place - to 18th - since the Scotland striker arrived, but they have won five of their 14 games since, compared to two of the previous 14.
"Really enjoying my time there," the 30-year-old, who has scored twice in 13 games for his new club, said. "The main aim was getting game time and minutes, feeling good and making Charlton a better team hopefully and I think I've done that so far.
"We've got to finish the season strong, I am there until the summer and then we'll see what happens."
Dykes earned his 49th cap by starting Saturday's 1-0 defeat by Japan but is not taking his seat on the plane to the Americas for granted.
"You have to make sure you finish strong and finish fit and hopefully performing as well," he said.
Dykes recognises "there are things we can do a little bit better" when the Scots face Ivory Coast in Liverpool on Tuesday.
"We conceded a sloppy goal, but these are games that we can learn from going into the World Cup," he added.
"We don't want to be losing games, but the manager is trying new things out, he's got a bigger squad and I'm sure he'll use a lot of the squad for the next game.
"It is another test and another team we haven't played before and it is going to cause us more challenges."
'The truth is Charlton are in a good place'published at 10:29 GMT 23 March
10:29 GMT 23 March
Paul Sullivan Fan writer
Image source, Shutterstock
The Valley on Saturday felt like spring and a reality check rolled into one for Charlton Athletic.
Norwich City, battle-hardened from their unlucky defeat at Southampton and not home until 03:00 GMT on Thursday, still had enough about them to show their Championship quality and win through in the end.
Pelle Mattsson's fifth-minute strike – crisp, clinical and helped by Charlton backing off – underlined key differences between the two outfits.
Norwich's structure was striking: they moved the ball with real clarity, hunted Charlton in packs when possession was lost and even indulged in a touch of nonchalant showboating at kick-off.
When Charlton did have the ball, the players in yellow and green were pecking at them relentlessly.
For Charlton fans, that opening 45 minutes was a tough watch: passive, short on belief and worryingly familiar for a side that has not scored more than once at home since October.
The early goal brought an uncomfortable thought. After what Southampton did to us in November - conceding five by half-time - was another mauling on the cards for us?
Only goalkeeper Will Mannion, making a string of excellent saves, kept that fear at arm's length and strengthened his case to keep Thomas Kaminski out of the side.
After the break, though, Charlton finally began to look like the team Nathan Jones is trying to build. The press had more bite, the passing gained purpose and chances came: Greg Docherty, Kayne Ramsay, Harry Clarke and Sonny Carey all went close as Norwich retreated into heroic blocks and counter-attacks.
By the end, after The Valley crowd pleaded for a penalty when Lloyd Jones was wrestled to the floor and sceptical about a mere five minutes added on, Charlton had strong claims to have earned a point.
Norwich, to their credit, showed exactly why Philippe Clement has transformed this team from relegation candidates into one of the form teams in the division.
Their organisation is something Charlton can aspire to: the same intensity home and away, the same belief, the same ruthless use of moments. Yet for all the difference in resources and squad depth, the league table still has Charlton only a handful of points behind – a reminder that this is "Championship school", and the Addicks are learning quickly.
There are legitimate gripes – the penalty that never came and the baffling delay before the introduction of Charlie Kelman, who had netted twice in recent games.
There is also a fine line between constructive criticism of Tyreece Campbell, who improved markedly when shifted to wing-back, and the caustic abuse that serves nobody.
Because when the anger subsides and the international break gives everyone time to reflect, one truth remains: under Nathan Jones, Charlton are in a good place, nine points clear of trouble, and good enough to take their rightful place in the Championship again in 2026-27.
"We have to defend the goal better," Jones told BBC Radio London. "
We debrief, we tell them, we show them. That's really disappointing. Then we have enough situations in the final third to have created more than we did, but we lacked quality and composure.
"We hit the bar. We had so many situations and opportunities to cross and punish, but we don't. That's our learning curve. It's a tough league and we have to get better - whether that's more work or different personnel.
The Charlton boss also expressed his dissatisfaction with the performance of referee Will Finnie but when considering the bigger picture for Charlton in their first campaign back in the Championship, he is heartened by their progress.
He added: "There are unacceptable decisions again. Last week there was, in my opinion, a poor refereeing decision and it cost us. I have no doubt in my mind we'll get another apology for a baffling decision.
"If I do my job, and it goes to the timescales, then we're talking a few years for us to be competing and playing. We are competing with these, but on a different level resource wise.
"We're not in the worst place but we want to push boundaries. If we develop in the next two years as we have the last two years, we'll be in a different position."
Pick of the stats: Charlton Athletic v Norwich Citypublished at 11:14 GMT 19 March
11:14 GMT 19 March
Norwich City will look to keep their hopes for a heroic run to the play-offs alive as they take a trip to Charlton Athletic on Saturday (15:00 GMT).
The Canaries saw their promotion aspirations take a hit after their four-match winning streak came to an end with a close 1-0 loss to Southampton on Wednesday, leaving them nine point adrift of the topic six.
But the Addicks will make it difficult for their visitors to bounce back, only losing one of their past six league matches (W2 D3) and hoping to extend the distance between themselves and the bottom three to double figures.
Charlton lost in this season's reverse fixture against Norwich (0-1 on Boxing Day 2025) and haven't lost home and away to them in a league campaign since 1971-72.
This will be Norwich's first league game at The Valley in over a decade (since February 2015), when they won 2-3 against Guy Luzon's Charlton under the management of Alex Neil.
Charlton have won more games by a 1-0 scoreline than any other team in the Championship this season (8), including one in their most recent home game (1-0 v Birmingham).
Norwich have won six of their last 10 league games on a Saturday (D1 L3), after only winning two of their first 12 in the current campaign (D2 L8).
Two of Charlie Kelman's three league goals at the Valley have been the only strike in a 1-0 win after coming off the bench, including in the Addicks' most recent one (1-0 v Birmingham)
Do you want VAR in the Championship?published at 08:18 GMT 18 March
08:18 GMT 18 March
Image source, Getty Images
There have been plenty of contentious decisions in the 2025-26 Championship season so far.
Offside goals given, perfectly good goals ruled out, red card offences missed, penalties not given, dubious spot-kicks awarded. You name it.
With the video assistant referee (VAR) only used for the play-off final, the outcome of every second-tier game in the regular season can hinge on how on-field officials see incidents in real time.
Would you want VAR introduced for every league game in the Championship?
If so, why?
And if not, let us know your reasons.
You can share your thoughts on VAR here or comment below, and we will publish a follow-up article soon with a selection of your responses.
Penalties decide scrappy contest at Oxfordpublished at 09:35 GMT 16 March
09:35 GMT 16 March
Paul Sullivan Fan writer
Image source, Shutterstock
In a season where nothing comes easily, Charlton Athletic's 1–1 draw at Oxford United had all the tension of a Championship scrap - two sides in form, fighting for every inch, and neither quite content at full-time.
Coming into the clash, Charlton could take rare comfort in the stats. Oxford's passing accuracy sat even lower than ours but both sides arrived confident.
Nathan Jones brought back his big defensive guns that beat Birmingham City. Up top, Miles Leaburn was drafted in replacing the ill Lyndon Dykes, a late blow that unsettled the rhythm before kick-off.
The contest itself echoed December's meeting: scrappy, low quality, and short on cohesion.
Oxford's opener came via a contentious penalty, Kayne Ramsay harshly judged after what looked minimal contact on Will Lankshear.
Cameron Brannagan duly converted, leaving Jones seething on the touchline as his team started to miss the chance to hit the 50‑point mark by mid-afternoon.
Yet as Charlton often do under Jones, they refused to fold.
Oxford's Ciaron Brown - who'd graciously praised Charlton's survival prospects pre‑match - handed the Addicks a lifeline when he pulled back Lloyd Jones in the dying embers of the game to concede the second penalty of the match.
Charlie Kelman stepped up with ice in his veins, converting his sixth goal of the season to silence the Kassam. His celebration, charging towards the away fans, summed up the release of a draining week.
Up against Birmingham at home, away to Middlesbrough and then to Oxford in a gruelling seven days, seven points in three matches represents a major stride towards safety. Still, Jones' frustration was plain. He demands standards, and Charlton's display in Oxfordshire lacked the urgency shown midweek on Teesside.
Now comes Norwich City at The Valley - a proper test before the international break.
Will Mannion should keep the gloves after another steady showing, even with Thomas Kaminski fit again. And while many already talk of safety, seasoned Charlton hearts know better: complacency is fatal in this league. But with 48 points on the board and spirit intact, this team has earned the right to believe.
Jones urges Charlton players to follow his gameplanpublished at 15:19 GMT 14 March
15:19 GMT 14 March
Image source, Shutterstock
Image caption,
Charlton boss Nathan Jones was not happy with his players at Oxford
Charlton boss Nathan Jones was delighted with the Addicks' stoppage-time equaliser at Oxford in their 1-1 draw - but says they must follow his gameplan.
Jones felt Charlton fell into Oxford's trap and they were too passive before they fought back to earn a point at the Kassam Stadium.
He told BBC Radio London: "It's been an outstanding week. I mean, seven points from the week has been truly, truly outstanding.
"Today's performance was everything I didn't want because we said, they sit in, they don't press you, they sit in, and they've done West Brom and Blackburn here. It's obligatory, apparently, in the Championship, that you have to be a nice, passive footballing team.
"I didn't want us to do that and for about 70-odd minutes, we were a passive, passive, typical bang-average Championship team. Then as soon as we started playing with any tempo and putting it on them and turning them and stretching them, we could have scored two or three.
"Finally we got our goal, so I'm pleased we got the point. But they have to listen. They have to listen to what we say."
Pick of the stats: Oxford United v Charlton Athleticpublished at 10:08 GMT 13 March
10:08 GMT 13 March
Oxford United will be aiming to continue their winning streak and move out of the bottom three when they host Charlton Athletic on Saturday (12:30 GMT).
The U's have won their past three league games, and are only inside the relegation zone on goal difference.
But the Addicks have back-to-back wins from their past two matches and will be full of confidence after beating second-placed Middlesbrough last time out.
Oxford are unbeaten in seven home league meeting with Charlton (W4 D3) since a 2-1 defeat in January 1998.
Charlton are looking to complete their first league double over Oxford since the 1997-98 campaign.
Oxford have won just one of their last 12 league games that have kicked off at 12:30pm (D7 L4), a 1-0 home win over Derby in October earlier this season.
Charlton boss Nathan Jones has won all three of his EFL matches against Oxford, beating them twice with Luton and again with the Addicks earlier this season.
Charlton have won their last four league games against sides with United in their name - and all by a 1-0 scoreline.
Charlton's Riverside Resiliencepublished at 09:57 GMT 13 March
09:57 GMT 13 March
Paul Sullivan Fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
There are countless ways to win a football match, and Charlton Athletic's 1–0 triumph at Middlesbrough was a shining example of the most stubborn kind.
Against a side that had swept aside QPR and Birmingham City, scoring four and three goals respectively in recent weeks, Nathan Jones' men produced a defensive masterclass of grit and structure.
Middlesbrough may have enjoyed 78% possession and rained down 34 attempts on goal, but it was Charlton who left Teesside with the points — and another clean sheet.
It came courtesy of Conor Coady, exuding authority throughout, who prodded home from Harry Clarke's long throw-in - a set-piece routine also used to outstanding effect in Charlton's home win over Birmingham last time out.
Jones fielded a notably weakened side, rotating his rearguard ahead of Saturday's early kick-off at Oxford United, yet the organisation never wavered.
Stand-ins Keenan Gough and Macaulay Gillesphey put in tireless shifts before making way for Kayne Ramsay and Amari'i Bell, while Will Mannion continued to deputise superbly between the sticks.
For assistant manager Curtis Fleming, it was an emotional return to the Riverside, where he made 266 appearances as a player and gained promotion with them to the Premier League in 1994-95.
For Jones, it was another vindication of his meticulous preparation and tactical clarity.
He famously loves a clean sheet - the Addicks now have 13 this term, complementing the 26 that propelled them through last season's play-offs.
The boss admitted afterwards, tongue firmly in cheek, that "every time we had the ball, we gave it away, so we were better off without it."
His team, however, displayed fierce concentration and willpower, frustrating Kim Hellberg's Boro into submission.
The victory lifted Charlton within touching distance of the 50-point mark and left the travelling fans - whom Jones jokingly said "need their heads testing" for the midweek trek north - grinning all the way home.
Results like this don't just keep the Addicks safe; they remind the Championship that Charlton Athletic are very much alive, organised, and believing again.
'It's a monster of a league'published at 22:31 GMT 11 March
22:31 GMT 11 March
Media caption,
Nathan Jones post Middlesbrough
Charlton manager Nathan Jones was proud of his players as they climbed further clear of danger with a huge win at Middlesbrough.
Conor Coady's first goal for the club was enough for three points and a dogged rearguard display pleased Jones.
He told BBC London: "It is all about the result for us at this point. To come to one of the best teams in the division and put in that level of performance, I'm pleased. Every time we had the ball we gave it away so we were better off without it.
"They have wonderful players, they will get promoted I am sure but my players did me proud. You saw a group wanting to defend and doing the basics well. It's such an important part of the season to get back-to-back wins. It is a monster of a league."
Image source, Getty Images
