Manager Stephen Robinson has told his players to ‘enjoy the occasion’ ahead of our Emirates FA Cup Third Round tie away at Tottenham Hotspur.
The Shrimps have reached the Third Round stage of the competition for the second season in a row after overcoming Buxton in December and were duly rewarded with a trip to North London to face Antonio Conte’s men.
After facing Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the same stage of last year’s FA Cup, which was played behind closed doors, Robinson has urged his players to enjoy the day out in the capital.
“We can’t wait, we’ve actually played it down, our sole focus was obviously on league games,” he said.
“Now the week’s building up, we’ve told the boys to enjoy the occasion, it may be the biggest stage that any of them will play on or have played on.
“As a club, to get a draw against somebody like Spurs, you either want somebody really low [so] that you can get to the next round or you want one of the top teams in the country, and we’ve certainly got that.
“A top team, with a superb stadium, and again an occasion we must enjoy.”
Shrimps’ fans missed out on watching their team come up against Chelsea last season due to the game being played behind closed doors, and the boss says he’s glad the supporters can voice their support in person this time around.
Robinson added: “It’s something that, especially for the fans, it’s been something that they’ve waited for a long, long time, they missed out on Chelsea last year, they missed out on the vast majority of getting promoted.
“It’s going to be fantastic for them to travel down and enjoy the day.
“I had the dread when this Omicron variant kicked in, you’re thinking ‘oh no not again, they’re going to make it behind closed doors at a stadium like that’ and I’m just delighted for them.
“I’ve had nothing but positivity from people since I came here, even when we’ve had a few weeks previously before Saturday where we couldn’t get a win, we weren’t playing particularly well either, and I’ve had nothing but positivity from people around the town, from the supporters, from the directors.
“It’s nice that they get their day in the sun so-to-speak and really, really enjoy the occasion.”