Claudio Ranieri insists Fulham "have to win" against Brighton on Tuesday as his side continues to battle relegation.
Fulham head into the match at Craven Cottage looking for their first win of 2019, having won just once in their previous 10 games in the Premier League.
Brighton are currently 13th in the table - six places above Fulham - and Ranieri believes his side will have to work as hard as possible to secure all three points.
The Italian said: "Brighton are playing very well. It's very simple - they want to counter-attack, close the space, break the lines, and win free-kicks and corners.
"Tomorrow is crucial for us. Brighton is a good team and very direct, but we have to win. We must give our maximum effort to win.
"They played with just five or six [first team regular] players in the cup and they will have recovered very well. Tomorrow will be a very good battle."
Fulham have managed just three wins and 14 points in the league so far this season, now finding themselves seven points behind Newcastle in 17th place.
A narrow loss to Tottenham in their last game plunged Fulham further into difficulty, but Ranieri insists his side can take encouragement from that defeat moving forward.
"I think we played a good match but when you play against champions they can create something," he added.
"I talked to my players and said the match was good. We have to continue this way, but concentrate until the end.
"We are always positive and will never give up. We are ready to give our maximum effort. The battle is hard but we can only improve."
Three days remain until the end of the transfer window and Fulham have still only signed one player so far - Ryan Babel from Besiktas.
Chelsea defender Gary Cahill has been linked with a move to Craven Cottage, but Ranieri admitted he's unsure whether the England international will join this month.
He said: "I don't know if Cahill is on our lists. We have alternatives and I am sure the club will try to do the best for the team.
"We are looking for some good opportunities and we will be ready."
French striker Aboubakar Kamara was suspended by Fulham last week after being arrested for alleged bodily harm and criminal damage, and he has since been banned indefinitely from the training ground.
He is now the subject of a club investigation, but Ranieri was quick to dismiss suggestions the squad have been disrupted by the incident.
"I don't know what happened here, we have to wait," the 67-year-old said.
"There's no influence. Everybody is working well and it's no problem. In this moment he's not available. He's suspended from the club and now we are waiting."
Ranieri confirmed that midfielder André-Frank Zambo Anguissa has been training with the squad but is not yet ready for first-team action. Defender Alfie Mawson will have a check on his knee injury in six weeks, but will not miss the rest of the season.