Brentford Manager Uwe Rösler said his side will “go for it” in their FA Cup with Budweiser Second Round tie against Carlisle United.
The Bees head north for the Second Round tie tomorrow on the back on eight wins in nine in all competitions.
Uwe said his team will address the match like every other in their recent streak and seek to emulate their run last season.
The Bees reached the Fourth Round last year and were beaten in a replay by Chelsea, then UEFA Champions League holders, after narrowly failing to win the first tie.
A win over Carlisle would put Brentford in the Third Round when Premier League and Championship sides come in to the competition.
“It is very important we address the game against Carlisle as a league game,” said Uwe, speaking to Bees Player.
“We had a fantastic experience with the FA Cup last season.
“It is the best cup competition in the world.
“It is a beautiful competition.
“It allows lower league teams with the right draw to make heroes and secure financial stability.
“We want to be in the hat when the big boys come in.
“We want to go for it and be in the hat.”
Uwe was given permission to speak to Wigan Athletic about their managerial vacancy yesterday and will hold talks shortly.
He spoke to Bees Player before Brentford received the approach from Wigan.
Uwe will be in charge of Brentford at Brunton Park and wants to put right a record of one draw and one defeat in two visits.
He said there were injuries affecting team selection but that gave a chance for others.
“Carlisle has been a difficult place for us,” said Uwe.
“We have never won there in my reign.
“We got a draw there and we lost.
“They normally have a nice pitch, a big pitch, that should suit us but for some reason we have a problem there.
“Hopefully this year we can change that.
“Stats are there to be broken.
“We are in good shape.
“One or two players will not start, due to medical issues, they have not trained.
“The guys coming in can make an impression.”
Carlisle drew 0-0 at Griffin Park in August but Uwe said that game would not influence this one.
Since then Graham Kavanagh has stepped up from Assistant Manager to Manager and Uwe said Carlisle had reverted to a plan that served them well in the past.
“They have gone back to the way they played last year when they had their good run,” said Uwe.
“They play 4-1-4-1 with energetic, technical players in midfield.
“They have a solid defence.
“There is a reason they have picked up points.
“We have to be on guard.
“It is a difficult game, the chances are not better than 50/50.
“We have to put ourselves in a decent position to win the game and prepare 100 per cent. “
Brentford’s latest win was a 1-0 victory at Meadow Lane against Notts County.
Uwe said his team did not play well in the first half and he put that down to recent exertions.
In the days before the County win Brentford had drawn 0-0 away to promotion favourites Wolverhampton Wanderers and beaten Peterborough United, who are also challenging.
Uwe said he felt the Notts County performance showed it was sometimes necessary to change the team to keep energy levels high.
“We have to start better than we did against Notts County,” said Uwe.
“Notts County is a difficult place to go, Peterborough have just come down from The Championship and Wolves are the favourites.
“You have to go in to your reserves for three games.
“That is tough when the margins are small.
“The players put an enormous amount in to the first two games and you could see in the beginning we were mentally not fresh.
“The longer the game went on the better it was.
“They died out and we took control.
“It is a warning for us.
“The league is so competitive; you don’t find that competitiveness anywhere else.
“To achieve big things we have to be on it.
“The players realise we have to rotate.
“Everyone wants stability but at some point the quality will suffer.
“In the first half our quality was not as we have shown in the past seven or eight weeks.
“That was due to the energy we burned in the previous two games.
“At Christmas and in to January we have four games in ten days, we can’t play with the same XI.
“It is impossible to do that and keep the quality.
“To play with high pressing, sometimes we have to bring in fresh legs without losing the quality.
“This is why we train every day with 20 players, not 13.”
Bees Player subscribers can see an interview with Uwe Rösler, conducted yesterday, here.