Swansea City v Middlesbrough: Kim Hellberg wants strength and smiles as he takes responsibility
Kim Hellberg feels like Middlesbrough are coming up against a "higher power" at the moment, but he wants his players to face it with a smile on their faces.
And where there is criticism to be doled out, Hellberg wants it directed at him.
Boro need to arrest momentum moving in the wrong direction after dropping out of the Championship's top two for the first time in 220 days on a bad Friday.
Their first chance to respond will be at Swansea City on Monday evening, by which time they will be fourth if Ipswich Town beat Birmingham City, and four points adrift of the automatic promotion spots should Millwall follow up Friday's 2-1 win on Teesside with another at home to Norwich City.
Boro have won two of their last nine matches, and are on a four-game winless streak where 97 shots have produced just two goals.
It is, says Hellberg, a mental test.
"We promised ourselves we're going to do everything we can in these seven games in a month (starting with Millwall), bring all the energy," said the Swede. "That was what we talked about after (Friday's defeat).
"Now it's the next one, you go home and handle the game the way you have to handle it.
"I want us to go with energy, with a smiley face, even if someone after is trying to test us in some way, because that's what it feels like.
"We're talking a lot about there are things that you cannot control. It feels like a higher power tells us in many ways.
"You have to be strong through that. That's what it's about.
"Whatever you're going to reach and go in life, it's never an easy way. If you want to go, you want to go.
"Whether it's in a normal job or if it's being a mother of two children alone or whatever it is, you have to fight all the way if you want to succeed. That's what we're going to have to do.
"And that's why we have to fight through this one to hopefully end up where we want to be."
Swansea were confident Hellberg was going to be their new manager until the Teessiders gazumped them in the autumn. Unsurprisingly, then, he is not short of confidence in himself and his principles.
Friday was yet another game where Boro let their opponents off lightly when right on top of them, then gifted former player Josh Coburn his second goal of the game when Adilson Malanda was caught playing out sloppily from the back.
"It's the question mark of what should you do," said Hellberg when asked about his team's pitiful conversion rate since scoring four at Queens Park Rangers.
"Should you stop playing good football and stop creating chances? What can you do? You've got to keep believing that over time (Boro will get their rewards).
"But it is what it is. Football is about scoring goals.
"Of course it's a concern we're working on every day.
"It's not an option here. You have to fight and you have to work through it.
"That's what we're trying to do and that's why the energy will be important. That's why after the game on Saturday my message was that tomorrow we go again.
"If there's someone to blame, it's me.
"It's all about my responsibility. It's all about my way of seeing at things. It's all about my way of helping them.
"That's the main message. I think that it's my job to try to do it better.
"Because they are giving everything they can for this shirt and for the club. I think they are doing an unbelievable work on the football pitch.
"I see a team that fights, that runs, that plays football, creates a lot of opportunities, and concedes almost nothing.
"So it's up to me to help them to be better. That's my responsibility – to give a lot of energy to them, help them and try to show them the way and help them in that part, depending on what they need."
Hayden Hackney, Morgan Whittaker and Leo Castledine will again miss out through injury.
"Hayden's the best player in the league and Morgan is our top-scorer," Hellberg pointed out. "Leo has been showing how well he can do.
"Of course we missed them (on Friday) but I'm proud of the performance and what the players do.
"There's nothing I can say to them in terms of what they did do. They fight, they run, they try to be brave and they play and do everything they can.
"It depends on me and I have to do it better."
Middlesbrough were unchanged for the two games straddling the international break and whilst some freshening up might help, especially with Aidan Morris playing in America and Riley McGree Australia during it, Hellberg's use of substitutes suggests there will be little if any.
Wing-back Matt Targett came off injured and will have to assessed but Hellberg's only tactical substitution was the introduction of forward Jeremy Sarmiento in the 89th minute.