Matthew Upson has spoken of the togetherness in the camp as the squad look to Saturday's trip to Sunderland with renewed confidence.
The West Ham United captain said the second-half display last weekend against Arsenal summed up the belief behind the manager. "We were determined to go out there and get back into the game. We did that, we ground it out and got back in.
"The team has fighting spirit. We spoke about that at half-time and went back out there to give it a go, we had nothing to lose at that point. It shows we're all together, a second-half comeback like that shows we're all together and behind the manager.
"We have been getting penalised for every mistake, every half mistake of late we have been making. They have cost us but it was good to get back in there and maybe we could have even won it."
The England international said the squad and in particular the manager Gianfranco Zola were only concerned about what they did on the pitch, and not those writing the club off already. "Criticism comes your way in this job, especially for managers. But I am sure he can deal with it all.
"We will all take the criticism on the chin together, do something about it and continue to come back from any of it in a positive manner."
Summing up that response was his England team-mate Robert Green who produced a stunning match-winning save at the death to save a point - and underline his international credentials when the goalkeeping position is under close scrutiny. "He's a strong lad, he's been brilliant and anything like that can only make him stronger."