Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin insists his players are fighting and busting a gut in a bid to end a damaging 12-game winless collapse.
The struggling Dons have now taken just four points from the last possible 36 in the Premiership following a 3-0 loss to Rangers at Ibrox.
Thelin’s Reds went down with a whimper in Govan and only saves by keeper Ross Doohan prevented the scoreline being more severe.
Aberdeen are in the midst of the worst run of form of any team in the Scottish top-flight.
It is in brutal contrast to a sensational 11-game unbeaten start to the league campaign which left the Reds level on points with league leaders Celtic.
When Aberdeen beat Rangers 2-1 at Pittodrie on October 30 they moved nine points clear of the Ibrox side.
In a remarkable swing in fortunes the Reds are now 12 points behind second-placed Rangers.
Thelin accepts Aberdeen are facing “challenging times” as the pressure mounts to end the winless slump.
However, the Swede says the effort and commitment of his players to turn their form around is not in question.
He said: “I can still see a team out there who are really fighting and running for each other.
“They still gave everything out there against Rangers.
“They are trying in challenging times to give everything they can.
“But it costs a lot of energy when you give away the ball too many times so we have to improve that part with the ball.
“We just need to find a rhythm as a team and be better with the ball.
“If you don’t have that rhythm, you get exposed.”
Thelin addresses lack of cutting edge in attack at Ibrox
Misfiring Aberdeen are now three games without scoring having also drawn 0-0 with Hearts and lost 2-0 at Motherwell.
The last goal for the Dons was scored by Kevin Nisbet in the first half of the 2-1 loss to Ross County.
Thelin has already added four signings during the January transfer window and securing a striker remains a priority.
Pape Gueye remains the Dons’ top scorer in the Premiership with five goals and he has been out injured for four months.
Former Senegal under-21 international Gueye is set to return to action this month following a thigh muscle tear.
Striker Ester Sokler is ruled out for up to eight weeks with a hamstring injury.
Aberdeen struggled to create chances against Rangers.
When asked about the lack of attacking threat at Ibrox, Thelin said: “We didn’t have that connection to the ball so we didn’t get enough players up.
“We are not there yet where we can get up with the ball and get this control.
“We need to use the power of our attacking players.
“There is work to do with how we play the ball.
“We must be more composed when we have the ball as we gave away too many transitions.
“That’s what hurt us inside the game.
“We know the expectation when you play for this club.
“And we have to take a big step to be more relaxed with the ball and show more of our presence.
“We have to raise the standards of our own game and are trying to do that.
“We also have to add energy to the team.”
Assessment of new signings’ debuts
Thelin handed debuts to new signings Alfie Dorrington and Alexander Jensen in the loss at Rangers.
Both were introduced in the second half with the Dons 1-0 down.
Centre-back Dorrington, 19, is secured on loan from Premier League Tottenham Hotspur until the end of the season.
Versatile full-back/midfielder Jensen, 23, was signed in a £545,000 deal from Swedish Allsvenskan club Brommapojkarna .
Jensen signed a four-year contract with the Dons.
On Jensen and Dorrington’s debuts, Thelin said: “They didn’t have much time to prepare themselves.
“However. they did really well when they came on the pitch.
“That’s good because we have some players who have to play a lot because of injuries.
“Some players who we haven’t been able to rest because we don’t have enough players in this moment.
“So we are a little bit of a mix of everything at the moment.”
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