Ayoze Perez says everyone connected to Newcastle must stick together as they search for their first Premier League win of the campaign.
The Magpies have made their worst-ever start to a top-flight season in terms of points after being caught by a last-gasp sucker punch at Old Trafford.
Newcastle could have been home and dry after racing into a two-goal lead inside 10 minutes through Kenedy and Yoshinori Muto, but Manchester United stormed back to win 3-2 at the death.
It leaves Rafael Benitez’s side on two points at the end of a week that saw divisive owner Mike Ashley take the staff and players out for dinner at an Italian restaurant in a bid to improve relations.
“We are trying to create that togetherness as much as we can,” Perez said.
“The spirit is good, but we have to stick together, train hard, keep going, keep pushing. Today was a step up but, against a top side, it was not enough.
“The most important thing is we all travel in the same direction, keep pushing, all together – the most important thing is that we all stay together.”
Newcastle’s performance at Old Trafford certainly belied their poor start to the campaign.
“(Our confidence) is still good,” said the Spaniard.
“We came here to play against a top side and we did that. The feeling is that we played well but that was not enough today. They scored one more goal than us.
“In the end, they had to put all their forwards on. We should have handled it better and got the result we so desperately wanted.”
Perez is not getting carried away by talk of a relegation battle and said it was vital not to panic, but knows just how vital the clash against Brighton at St James’ Park is after the international break.
“In two weeks, it is a big game,” he added.
“We must beat teams like that.”
