Abbott is set to make changes for Saturday's trip to Swindon Town
Carlisle United caretaker boss Greg Abbott believes his squad need a "shake-up" after their FA Cup exit by Crewe on Wednesday night.
Abbott was unhappy with his side's display in the 2-0 second-round defeat at Brunton Park.
"There's not a desperation, there are good players here," Abbott told BBC Radio Cumbria.
"We could do with something different in certain areas but we are always looking to do that."
Two goals from Shaun Miller secured Crewe's first away win of the season in front of a crowd of just 2,755, Carlisle's lowest FA Cup attendance since 2001.
"We were dull, the whole thing was dead," Abbott said.
"We started off like a bag of rags and I let the players know what I thought at half time.
"We never found that quality to break down what I thought was an ordinary side to be honest."
The Cumbrians' boss had praise for young striker Gary Madine who made his third start of the season.
"I thought Gary did quite well tonight. I felt a bit sorry for him because he's worked his socks off," he said.
Abbott will now consider changes to his side for Saturday's League One fixture at fellow strugglers Swindon Town.
On-loan duo Tim Krul and Chris Birchall come into contention after missing the Crewe defeat while midfielder Paul Thirlwell is expected to return.
"With our players, sometimes you give them a pat on the back and they go into some sort of zone that's not what I'm after and not what I expect," Abbott said.
"We've got to be better than that. We've got to be tougher."
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