Former Brighton striker Warren Aspinall insists that "attitude problems" are more to blame for the Seagulls' current form than Fabian Hurzeler.
Defeat by Liverpool in the FA Cup extended Brighton's winless run to six games in all competitions.
If Hurzeler's side, who sit seven points above the relegation zone, want to secure Premier League survival, then Aspinall thinks that some of his players should shift their mentality and work harder.
"Some people have got attitude problems," he told BBC Radio Sussex's podcast Albion Unlimited.
"They think it's just easier to put their hand up and say 'yes, sorry, I've done it again.' It's like a lollipop lady, a lollipop man, crossing the road. It goes up three or four times a game, certain players.
"I won't dig him out because it's his second game, but Harry Howell reacted when the ball went past him and he just dangles his leg for the first goal for Liverpool on Sunday. You have to react quicker, you have to go with your runner.
"They'll punish you. They're running all the time, the opposition - especially the top teams. They never stop running. We need to run more than the opposition. We're not doing that at the moment.
"If they're running 90km, their team - my team, I want them to run 100km. So then we've got an extra man somewhere running, that'll create more problems for the opposition. I'm not seeing that at the moment."
Amid a raft of Premier League manager dismissals, Fabian Hurzeler has come under heat for Brighton's form, the Seagulls having won one Premier League game since November.
But Aspinall says that it is Hurzeler's players who should take responsibility for turning things around.
"People say, 'the manager this, the manager that'. No no - it's not the manager's fault, this, it's the players'," Aspinall said.
"He can take them out, change the formation, change the personnel, try to make it better because some players have the wrong attitude in training, so he's not going to pick them on Saturday, showing him shocking training all week.
"I can hold my hand up because I've been there - bad attitude, concentrating on other things. You don't expect to play.
"He can't make them run another five yards or react quicker. You keep doing that, you come out of the team. You can't carry players. If you start switching off at the wrong times, the good teams will punish you.
"That's what they did on Saturday. It was easy. Liverpool didn't work hard for their first goal."
Listen below or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.
Explore all Brighton content on BBC Sounds
Listen to every Brighton game live on BBC Radio Sussex, with all the build-up and full commentary with Johnny Cantor and Warren Aspinall, and there is a full preview of all Seagulls' matches on Fridays at 18:00 in The Weekend Warm-up