Dean Smith spoke ahead of Brentford's trip to neighbours Fulham, aware of the importance to Brentford fans of the fixture.
“It’s a big game for the Club,” said Dean. “I believe we’ve sold out our allocation of 5,000 so there’s going to be a really good following there.”
The newly-installed Head Coach is looking to replicate his previous visit to Craven Cottage in 2006, when as Assistant-Manager at Leyton Orient, they pulled off one of the shocks of the round to win.
“Fulham were then a Premier League side,” said Dean. “Orient were a League Two team and won 2-1 so I’ve got good memories of that. But we know how difficult this is going to be.
“The one thing I’ve been stressing to the players is go and play like they did last week, but because it’s a local derby there’s got to be a sense of emotional control, so don’t get carried away with the occasion, [but] play the game.”
As the festive season approaches, the match schedule in the next month will test his squad to the limit but Dean was confident that the right choices will be made with the help of his backroom staff.
“We’ve got a very good sports science and medical department here who I can lean on,” said Dean. “I can have a good idea about the players and the likely ones who would fatigue. It’s all about the best thing for the football team. We want to get results every game and the way you get them is by performances. If you’ve got fresh players then you’ll get that. We’ll treat each game accordingly and see who’s fit and who’s not.”
Subscribers can view the entire press conference with Dean on Bees PlayerHD: