Rotherham manager Matt Hamshaw said he has found the job "harder than I envisioned".
The Millers, who host fellow strugglers Doncaster on Saturday, are second bottom of League One, three points adrift of safety.
Hamshaw was appointed boss of the South Yorkshire side in March last year after Steve Evans was sacked.
"I'm not an idiot, I'm well aware of where we are in the table but I am desperate to do well for this football club," the 44-year-old told BBC Radio Sheffield.
"The job has been tough. It's been probably harder than I envisioned it being.
"When we've put our best team out we look like a top outfit and I haven't had that luxury often but that doesn't take away from the fact that some of the performances this season have been well below par."
'We need to stick together'
The Millers, relegated from the Championship in 2024, endured an 11-match winless run in the league before successive victories over Northampton and Exeter at the end of January.
Back-to-back defeats by Cardiff and Burton have seen them drop back into the relegation zone in a congested bottom half of the table.
Hamshaw has said the club and fans need to be "united" as they look to avoid dropping down to League Two for the first time since 2013.
"It's important that we stick together and we're in it together," he said
"I understand the frustration, I get that, but we have to be united and be on the front foot. We have to make sure we come out of this in a much better place.
"I've been in this situation as a player, a coach and now a manager and I know what it takes to get out of it and the main thing is the belief in the changing room stays aligned to what we have and that no outside noise comes into the building.
"We have to stay focused and ready to fight."
Hamshaw added: "I've not seen many players turn around a massive performance in a negative atmosphere, that's not me saying anything about our fans that's just me being open and honest.
"On the other side of that, if you get right behind them it has a massive impact."