Paul Cook says his team have to work hard to earn the right to boss games.
Cook has been reflecting on back-to-back defeats against Blackpool and Doncaster and has told his players he wants others to see them as a team who put in a heavy shift.
He told The News: ‘I love it when people compliment you on how hard you team work — not how good they are, but how hard they work. That’s a lovely compliment and that’s my message to the players all this week. We have to start being that team.
‘I’ve probably got the most talented group I’ve managed. What is talent without work ethic and desire? It’s nothing. Absolutely nothing. What triggers a good performance? The three goals against Blackpool all came from our mistakes. On Saturday it was the same.
‘We have to earn the right to dominate the ball, and, at the minute we’re not. The person who must remain consistent on that is the manager. If the manager doesn’t remain consistent the players have no chance. So we’ll stay on the same page.’
Cook also challenged members of his squad to use the team's defeats to show they deserve a call-up. He said: ‘Any time you’ve had two defeats in the league, lads not in the team should be looking at forcing their way in. That’s the reality of football.'
Pompey head to Leyton Orient on Saturday.
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