Sunderland boss Paolo Di Canio admits his side lacked desire and commitment in their 6-1 loss to Aston Villa on Monday night.
The Black Cats were brushed aside by a rampant Villa outfit following two victories (Everton 1-0 and Newcastle United 3-0) on the trot which eased the pressure on possible relegation.
Di Canio feels perhaps that got to the players heads and contributed to them putting up such a subpar showing against a side also up against the drop.
"It was not a shock but a very bad defeat. Our performance, I am not very happy," he told Sky Sports.
"We thought the main job (of survival) was done. It is obvious if the team perform in this way. The first responsibility is (with) the manager and then the players.
"This is a medicine that can let us understand that we have to play with desire and commitment, otherwise we have a defeat. It is obvious this is a humiliation that can help. It is not acceptable tonight."
Di Canio added: "We have to apologise to our club, the fans, they travel and it is not fair.
"Every time we can lose, but not in this manner. Aston Villa, a team with real desire, played like (it was) the last chance of their lives. Maybe we were fooled by two wins in a row and now we have to make sure we get points against Stoke at home (next Monday)."
