Paul Pogba says Manchester United need to “change something” after being beaten 4-2 by Leicester, their second defeat in three Premier League games.
United have taken one point out of a possible nine, dropping to fifth and losing ground in the title race.
There have also been several other unconvincing performances this season.
“We have been having these kind of games for a long time and haven’t found the problem. We have conceded easy and stupid goals,” Pogba told Sky Sports.
“If we want to win the title, these are the games we need to win, even if they are very hard.
“We know that the fans were going to push and put pressure on us and we need to be more mature, play with more experience and arrogance – in a good way – by taking the ball and playing our football.
“We need to find the key for this change because we deserved to lose. I don’t know if it is the mindset of the players. We need to change something. We need to find the mentality and tactics to win. We have to look as individuals and as a team to fix this.”
United’s latest disappointment ended an unbeaten away league record spanning 29 games and 20 months.
It contained all too common themes for their supporters, with the team failing to control the tempo of the game in the middle of the park and conceding from dreadful defensive lapses.
Leicester’s first goal came from United’s own free-kick on the edge of their penalty area after Harry Maguire was caught out.
The visitors also twice let in goals from set-pieces, while Leicester’s third, 54 seconds after Marcus Rashford had equalised, came when Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s poor positioning was finally exploited by the hosts, with Jamie Vardy the beneficiary.
“We more or less gifted them the [first] equaliser,” said United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
“The second one was a set play, which is disappointing. We get an equaliser and then concede again 10 seconds later. Concentration was a key factor in this game.
“The whole performance was not good enough with and without the ball. Over the international break we have had a good look to see what has gone wrong lately.
“We have had too many games where we have lost points, so we need to look at the whole set-up and balance of the team and maybe something has to give.
“Every point in the Premier League you have to fight for. You have to tackle, block and win headers, and in key moments today we didn’t do that enough.
“Every game is a test of character here. Especially now it is an examination of character, staff, players and everyone around here, we have to stick together for Wednesday night.”
United face Atalanta in the Champions League on Wednesday, before hosting in-form Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday.