Julian Nagelsmann called for improvements from Bayern Munich and insisted his side must not become disenchanted after two disappointing performances.
The reigning Bundesliga champions are six points clear of second-placed Borussia Dortmund at the summit, despite falling to a 4-2 loss at Bochum last Saturday.
Nagelsmann's side followed up that disappointing defeat with another unspectacular performance in Salzburg on Wednesday, where they required a late Kingsley Coman strike to secure a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash.
The former RB Leipzig head coach expressed his frustrations with the recent outings but expects his team to bounce back when they travel to Furth on Sunday.
"We want to remain critical and have a certain claim in terms of success," Nagelsmann told reporters at Friday's pre-match news conference.
"We have to back that up, but we mustn't tear ourselves apart either. The tide can turn quickly, there is a lot of evaluation.
"The mood is appropriate for the fact that we have not won twice. Tomorrow's winner learns from today's defeat.
"We had detailed discussions after the game against Bochum. We didn't score an early goal in the second half, it was similar in Salzburg. But the will was obvious there. I was totally satisfied, I'm convinced that as a Bayern player you have the right to be successful.
"And that should also arouse greed. We saw that we lost clearly against a team that isn't aspiring to the Champions League. That should be warning enough. No one walks around with the handbrake on purpose."
The Bochum loss was Bayern's first to a newly promoted side in 16 games, but the Bavarians may take confidence from the fact they have not lost two consecutive Bundesliga games against promoted teams since 1997. Furth joined Bochum in climbing out of the second tier last season.
However, Bayern have experienced their worst start to the second half of a top-flight season in 10 years, with only nine points accrued from their first five games of 2022, winning three games and losing twice.
The last time they lost two or more matches in the first five matchdays of the second half of the season was in 2008-09 under Jurgen Klinsmann (three), and Nagelsmann's task could be made more difficult as he revealed doubts over the fitness of Coman and Serge Gnabry.
Nevertheless, Nagelsmann remained balanced in his views as he prepares Bayern for just their sixth meeting in professional football with Furth.
"Football is a head game," he added. "We didn't intentionally play a bad first half in Bochum. You can't shake off the cup game that easily either.
"There's often a black-and-white mindset. We have three points more than last year. We need a little more self-image and sovereignty. The head is an important part of the body.
"It's often the case that you have more to do psychologically than in terms of football. I train a world-class team here.
"You have to recognise the moment when a structure doesn't fit perfectly. In the last three games we haven't been completely in the flow. In the end it's about delivering and not about taking long-term steps."
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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