KUALA LUMPUR: Thomas Jefferson once said: "Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude."
And for the Selangor team who keep stumbling in the Super League, the mental attitude of their players is now in question.
And will they even be in the right frame of mind against mighty Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) at MBPJ Stadium tomorrow?
Will the Red Giants just surrender to the Southern Tigers and not summon an iota of fighting spirit?
Selangor team manager Mahfizul Rusydin Rashid urged his men to shut the critics out of their minds and focus on bettering themselves on the pitch.
"In our situation, all the negative things are coming out, and everyone is under stress. But this is something that has to be addressed individually," said Mahfizul.
"We need to identify the problem and overcome it. The best way forward is to build a strong mentality."
Mahfizul said the team's biggest problem now is converting the chances created into goals.
Last year, the 33-time Malaysia Cup champions finished fifth after scoring 45 goals in 22 games. This season they got 26 goals from 15 games.
"The players are upset they can't score because the statistics show that we are not converting many, with less shots on target too."