Stuart Pearce has told his players they must 'come out fighting' after Nottingham Forest's dismal run of form was maintained with a lacklustre 2-0 home defeat at the hands of Sheffield Wednesday.
The Reds boss finds himself under more pressure after the Owls departed the City Ground with a comfortable win, courtesy of goals from Kieran Lee and Chris Maguire, immediately either side of half time.
Forest again looked nervous and short of ideas – and did not mount a meaningful response until the dying stages of the game, with Lars Veldwijk in particular missing a golden opportunity.
While Reds fans had shown their support for Pearce during the first half, when they chanted his name in the third minute – in reference to his shirt number as a player – there were boos at the final whistle, following another disappointing defeat.
But, with a difficult game at Derby looming next weekend, Pearce says he and his players must come out fighting.
"We are suffering a lack of confidence at the minute, but I told the players that we cannot feel sorry for ourselves. I certainly can't," said Pearce.
"They need to come out fighting in the way that Ben Osborn did in the second half. I thought he showed great vim and vigour and if there is anyone we need to look to – and I include myself in that – it is him. He was unshakable.
"We are going to have to work hard and work through this. Last week we thought things were tough then, all of a sudden, you feel even more depressed. But it is important that the group do not hide.
"I have the confidence that we can turn this around. The nature of football is so volatile that things can change very quickly. But we need a victory and soon, to turn our fortunes around. I am more disappointed for the fans than myself.
"It was very frustrating, there was not a lot in the first half but then they broke from a corner and we find ourselves 1-0 down. It hurt us and it hurt our confidence a little bit. We never got that back."
