"I am looking for some character, some moral courage and some fighting performances," said McCarthy after the 3-0 defeat at Maine Road.
"We played all right for 35 minutes but I do not accept that as being good enough.
"If we play like that on Saturday we will get absolutely spanked. If that happens, there will be hell on - and justifiably so.
"Our supporters have been fantastic this season. They have had enough disappointments and don't deserve another poor performance.
"It looks like there have been so many bad days this season, some of the players can't wait for the season to end so they can start afresh. The problem is we can't just start afresh, there needs to be changes.
"But with the transfer market the way it is, a lot of them might still be here next season. If that is the case, they need to be a lot better because getting out of the first division is not going to be easy."
MANCHESTER CITY MATCH REPORT