Charlton midfielder Darren Pratley has said that the Addicks desperately need to 'stop the rot' as they go into Saturday's clash against Hull City without a win in nine games.
Charlton lost their fourth straight league game on Tuesday night against Huddersfield Town, being dealt a heavy blow by conceding in stoppage time at The Valley as the Addicks went down 1-0.
The SE7 side are back at home once again this Saturday against Hull City, hoping to pick up their first league win since October 19th.
A full-blown injury crisis that at one point saw 14 first-team players sidelined has not helped Charlton's cause, but recent results have been telling, and the Addicks sit in 24th place in the Championship form table, with one point from their last five games.
Speaking in the pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's clash, 34-year-old midfielder Darren Pratley was adamant that the side's fortunes need to change soon.
“It's important to stick together and not start blaming individuals. Let’s make sure we’re focused and stop the rot," he said.
"We need to end this poor run, and we have needed to end it four or five weeks ago."
Pratley also spoke about Charlton's upcoming opponents Hull City, warning his teammates to watch out for the in-form Jarrod Bowen.
“Hull are a good side, the boy [Jarrod] Bowen scores every week so it’ll be a tough game for us but we look forward to it," he said.
The central midfielder has featured 18 times in the league for the Addicks this season, playing a total of 1366 minutes for the club.
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The Verdict
Pratley's thoughts will echo what the dressing room are feeling at present, but it will come down to the application the players show on the pitch, as that will determine if Charlton can get a positive result in front of the Addicks fans this weekend.
The midfielder is one of the more experienced players at the club, and his leadership qualities will be counted upon in the next dew days leading up to the big game.