Aberdeen manager Jimmy Thelin says the buck stops with him after the club’s winless run extended to nine matches.
Thursday’s 2-1 defeat by Ross County at Pittodrie was the Dons’ third home loss in a row and their fourth straight defeat of the club’s ongoing, miserable winless run.
But Thelin insists he will find a solution to get the team back to winning ways.
The Dons boss said: “For me, it’s more about the performance because I’m the manager and I’m responsible for the team and how we play.
“We have a journey to do, to be that team we want to be in the future.
“We need to be consistent with intensity, put the basics, the high standards in some parts and be more stable.
“We can improve the team through training and keep pushing that and the pressure is on me to push that and also through recruitment.
“We have to know how we want the team to look in the future and we try to execute these things step by step.
“I’m always trying to avoid the word confidence – you have to have some tactical discipline and some basics in your team DNA.
“You can’t drop, even if it’s hard time.
“If you hide just behind confidence, how can you find a solution?”
Thelin calls for mental strength from Aberdeen
From a stunning start to the season where his side picked up 31 points from a possible 33, Thelin has watched his side muster just three points from a possible 27 after an alarming dip in form.
The frustration is building, but Thelin says there is no shortcut to success.
He said: “I think when you work in this business as a manager or a player for me, you have to be really strong in your mentality because there’s always pressure there.
“When you’re going really well, you have to stay your feet on the ground so you don’t lose the direction.
“And when it’s really, really tough, you can’t get beaten down, you have to have a strong belief in what you’re actually doing.
“For me, nothing has changed there from the long-term process – we know what we want to execute, we also know what we have to execute to get there and that’s the things we have to focus on.”
Dons boss repeats ‘stay humble’ mantra
A stunning 30-yard strike from Ross County defender Akil Wright gave the Staggies the lead at Pittodrie before Kevin Nisbet’s free-kick put the Dons on level terms before the break.
Duk struck the crossbar for the home side in the second half, before County goalkeeper Jordan Amissah denied Nisbet from close range as Aberdeen pushed for a second.
Noah Chilvers’ lob restored County’s lead and Don Cowie’s side held on to take all three points at Pittodrie.
Defeat means the Dons have lost further ground on Rangers, who are now five points clear of Thelin’s side, but the Aberdeen manager’s focus is now firmly on stopping the rot at Pittodrie.
He said: “It’s always a challenge, but I think you have to stay humble when things are going well and you also need to stay humble when things are going bad.
“You can’t lose track of what you want to build, even if you get emotional.
“Try to build a stronger and stronger team – and that’s what we’re trying to do.
“And the players are trying, but right now we don’t get the performance and we’re dropping too much sometimes in the game and it hurts.”
Aberdeen wait for news on Sokler injury
Defeat on Thursday was compounded by an injury to striker Ester Sokler, who limped off after just 30 minutes at Pittodrie.
When asked about the severity of the injury, Thelin said: “I don’t know, it’s too early.
“We have to assess him tomorrow, when the doctor and the medical staff have been there to check him, and then I’ll know better.”
Conversation