It is vital Leicester City get back on a winning run and pick up valuable points before Christmas, says striker Jamie Vardy.
Having lost back-to-back games, City face league leaders Burnley today and second-placed QPR next weekend, with the visit of Manchester City in the Capital One Cup sandwiched in between.
Vardy believes it is a vital time for Nigel Pearson's men.
However, he says it is not a season-defining week as the pressure is on all season long.
"People say you have to pick up points over Christmas but you have to pick them up all season long," he said.
"It is a long, hard grind this season. We hopefully will pick up some points over Christmas, starting with Burnley today, and then kick on and get a point at QPR.
"Then we have two more home games, and we have been doing very well at home.
"The league is the most important thing. We want to be in the top two. We will take Burnley first and then focus on Man City straight after."
Vardy believes City must put their defeats behind them and focus on regaining their status as Championship leaders.
"We have lost two on the bounce now but we need to forget about that and sweep it under the rug," he said.
"We need to start with a clean slate and, hopefully, go on another good run."
Burnley boss Sean Dyche, meanwhile, still believes City are the team to beat even though his Clarets side sit one point above them.
He says City are in even better shape this season than last, when they reached the play-offs, and applauded the owners for not panicking and sticking with manager Nigel Pearson.
"I think there's a different kind of expectation just because of the resources they've spent previously, the squad they've got, the size of the club, the crowds etc," said Dyche.
"You put them in the category with the bigger end of the market with QPR, Nottingham Forest, big resources, big clubs.
"They've got very experienced players, they've got a lot of players who can affect games, they've got a very strong squad and a very strong bench. You can understand why there's an expectation."
