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Battle scarred Wanderers prepare for one more FA Cup scrap against Liverpool tonight, with Neil Lennon insisting: “We can do it again!”
Down to the bare minimum of senior players, the Whites boss insists his side can conjure the same resolve they did to force a replay 11 days ago at Anfield and claim a fifth round trip to Crystal Palace.
Missing from the team that forced a 0-0 draw on Merseyside are ex-Reds striker Emile Heskey, cup hero Adam Bogdan and influential midfielder Darren Pratley – who was ruled out for up to two months yesterday with a hamstring tear.
None of the six players signed since the previous game are eligible to play, leaving precious few options for Lennon, particularly in attack.
But while the odds are stacked against his side again, the Northern Irishman believes a shock could still be on the cards.
“We can do it again – but to get through this tie we need the same defensive effort,” he said. "I think we will create more chances because we are at home.
“Our home form is very good, so there is more advantage to playing here than at Anfield, although the psychology of the tie changes.
“I think the game may be similar to the one at Anfield in terms of Liverpool having the majority of the ball. Whether they dominate possession as much as they did in the first game remains to be seen.
“Maybe Brendan (Rodgers) plays a different way away from home. He's certainly got pace to hit you on the counter-attack, so you have to be mindful of that.”
Eidur Gudjohnsen had two chances to win the first game for Wanderers, and Lennon hopes opportunities to nick the game will fall the way of his side once again.
“We do create in most games we play,” he said. “I certainly think at set-pieces as well we can be a threat.
“You don't know what way the game will go, you just can't read it, but it would be folly to play Liverpool at their own game because eventually they would wear us down. So we have to set ourselves up to be difficult to beat and be patient for our chances to come.”
Wanderers are likely to bring Gudjohnsen in for cup-tied Adam Le Fondre up front but could name Craig Davies on the bench after a hamstring problem.
With such a busy finale to transfer deadline day on Monday, Lennon admits it has been difficult to prepare for Liverpool’s visit.
“We’ll be able to get the players out tomorrow from the hotel and maybe work on a few set pieces but today we’ll be studying how Liverpool played at the weekend,” he said.
“I don’t think they’ll change their formation too much and you can’t second guess Brendan too much because he’s got such a good squad.”
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Down to the bare minimum of senior players, the Whites boss insists his side can conjure the same resolve they did to force a replay 11 days ago at Anfield and claim a fifth round trip to Crystal Palace.
Missing from the team that forced a 0-0 draw on Merseyside are ex-Reds striker Emile Heskey, cup hero Adam Bogdan and influential midfielder Darren Pratley – who was ruled out for up to two months yesterday with a hamstring tear.
None of the six players signed since the previous game are eligible to play, leaving precious few options for Lennon, particularly in attack.
But while the odds are stacked against his side again, the Northern Irishman believes a shock could still be on the cards.
“We can do it again – but to get through this tie we need the same defensive effort,” he said. "I think we will create more chances because we are at home.
“Our home form is very good, so there is more advantage to playing here than at Anfield, although the psychology of the tie changes.
“I think the game may be similar to the one at Anfield in terms of Liverpool having the majority of the ball. Whether they dominate possession as much as they did in the first game remains to be seen.
“Maybe Brendan (Rodgers) plays a different way away from home. He's certainly got pace to hit you on the counter-attack, so you have to be mindful of that.”
Eidur Gudjohnsen had two chances to win the first game for Wanderers, and Lennon hopes opportunities to nick the game will fall the way of his side once again.
“We do create in most games we play,” he said. “I certainly think at set-pieces as well we can be a threat.
“You don't know what way the game will go, you just can't read it, but it would be folly to play Liverpool at their own game because eventually they would wear us down. So we have to set ourselves up to be difficult to beat and be patient for our chances to come.”
Wanderers are likely to bring Gudjohnsen in for cup-tied Adam Le Fondre up front but could name Craig Davies on the bench after a hamstring problem.
With such a busy finale to transfer deadline day on Monday, Lennon admits it has been difficult to prepare for Liverpool’s visit.
“We’ll be able to get the players out tomorrow from the hotel and maybe work on a few set pieces but today we’ll be studying how Liverpool played at the weekend,” he said.
“I don’t think they’ll change their formation too much and you can’t second guess Brendan too much because he’s got such a good squad.”
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