Graeme Murty has called on Reading to get back to basics as they bid to overcome a miserable start to the new Premier League season.
And skipper Murty wants Reading to prove their mettle and bounce back quickly from their early season woes.
He told the Reading Evening Post: "We are renowned for our team spirit and our unity and now it's the time for us to prove it to ourselves and to everyone else.
"It's not the measure of the man when you go down, it's the measure of the men if you get back up or not and I think historically this team has been very good at that."
He added: "We need to be better than that - all the way through from one to 11. We know that, and the manager had a few home truths to say to a few people, so they have to be big enough and strong enough to take it on the chin.
"Confidence has taken a knock. We have conceded six goals in two games and no-one enjoys doing that.
"The measure of the team is how we come back. We know we have to improve and we know the areas we need to do that.
"There will be a hell of a lot of work taking place on the training pitch to put that right."