Paul Lambert has claimed that Stoke City moved away from their "identity" after the departure of former boss Tony Pulis.
The Potters, without a win in their last 10 fixtures, have four games left in the season to secure their Premier League status, starting against Burnley on Sunday.
Lambert, who replaced Mark Hughes in January, highlighted Stoke's culture of "sheer hard graft", specifically under Pulis, as being pivotal to their decade-long tenure in the top flight.
"I think they went away from the identity I knew under Tony Pulis, when it was built on a lot of hard graft - 70% or 80% that with a little sprinkle of gold dust," Lambert told Sky Sports News.
"Mark did great here as well with the lads that he brought in and finished mid-table but I think sometimes a club should have an identity of sheer hard graft. That's got to be set in stone.
"There are certain football clubs where the team should mirror the supporters and this is one of them. The supporters are vital to it and if you go away too much from that structure you end up losing your way a bit.
"I love it here because it's not too dissimilar to Glasgow, where I was brought up and where I came from. It's a hard-working area and Dortmund is the same, it's a pure steel industry, pure hard work, and as long as they see you working your backside off that's fine."
Stoke currently sit second from bottom in the table, five points from safety.
