Mauricio Pochettino has spoken out following Tottenham Hotspur's Carabao Cup penalty shoot-out loss against Colchester United.
Three months ago the north London outfit were in a Champions League final, but they don't seem to have recovered from losing to Liverpool.
Defeat against Colchester means it's still just two wins across all competitions for the Lilywhites so far this season - not the type of start associated with a team hoping to challenge for major honours.
Speaking after the loss, Pochettino admitted that one of the reasons for his side's slow start to the campaign is due to having an unsettled squad.
"I think we talked a lot in pre-season. We have experience in football and it’s so important the feelings were how I explained in pre-season but now it’s not about what I said in pre-season," he said when asked what's gone wrong this season.
"It's about that we knew or I knew it would be a tough situation.
"When you have an unsettled squad always it's difficult and you lose time and then you need time to recover the time you lose. That’s where we are.
"Maybe our performances are good but you need this extra, which is mental, connection, it's energy to be all together, not to have different agendas in the squad.
"We need time again to build that togetherness that you need when you are competing at this level.
Pochettino also hinted at being able to use the winter transfer window in order to address some issues.
"Look, I am only telling you how I feel. We are working so hard to try and put on the same page," he added. "We need time, we are going to have time to fix that.
"January is going to be a good opportunity to try and fix this type of situation and sort it.
"Then the next transfer window, again. That’s the problem when something happens and you cannot control – this type of situation can arrive. I’m more than happy to be in that situation, it means we are human.
"To keep the successful period in football you need to be different every single season and act differently and find different solution.
"Maybe we need to do something different and we are trying to find the way to start to perform and get the results we expect."
Next up for Pochettino is a clash against former club Southampton at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the Premier League at the weekend.
