STEVE Cotterill will warn his Bristol City players against the dangers of complacency before sending them out to face AFC Wimbledon in the third round of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy at Ashton Gate tonight.
Potentially just four games away from an appearance in a Wembley final, the unbeaten League One leaders will start short-priced favourites to beat opponents from the Football League basement.
But the Dons proved they have what it takes to cause an upset when defeating bitter rivals and League One promotion hopefuls MK Dons 3-2 in the last round.
And following on from City's shock Capital Cup exit at the hands of Oxford United in August, manager Cotterill is refusing to take AFC Wimbledon lightly.
While the bigger picture dictates that Saturday's impending top-of-the-table clash against Swindon Town takes priority, Cotterill is urging his players not to lose sight of the task that faces them in BS3 this evening.
He said: 'We would be stupid to look too far ahead and it is something we don't do anyway. It would be disrespectful of Wimbledon and we are not going to fall into that trap.
'At this moment in time, we cannot afford to do anything but take it one game at a time. It is when you take your eye off what is in front of you that you get beat. There is no point in looking to what comes afterwards until we are there.
'Even if we wanted to, we could not disrespect Wimbledon, because of the rules that say I must pick six players from my last starting line-up.'
Recalling AFC Wimbledon's famous 3-2 triumph over MK Dons last month, Cotterill said: 'It was a game they were all fired up for and they showed what they are capable of by beating MK Dons. That was a huge game for them in the last round and they will probably see this as another one.
'Wimbledon have a lot of very experienced players with a lot more games under their belts than most of my lads. There is no way we will take them lightly.'
Neil Ardley's Wimbledon side comprises some very experienced players, not least much-travelled striker Adebayo Akinfenwa, and Cotterill admits the 6ft 1in, 17-stone forward poses a 'major threat' to City's prospects of reaching the Southern Area semi-finals.
'The one thing about Akinfenwa is his size - he is a big, old unit,' said Cotterill. 'But he is also a very, very intelligent footballer and a good header of the ball.
'We know for sure that, any time he is on the pitch, he will prove a major threat.
'I don't know whether he will start or whether Neil will go with some of the others and look to introduce him later in the game.'
Just as he did in Saturday's FA Cup tie at Gillingham, Cotterill will again utilise his squad in a bid to ensure certain key players are fresh ahead of the M4 derby at the weekend.
First-choice right wing-back Mark Little will definitely not be risked tonight after sustaining a hamstring strain that prevented him playing at Gillingham.
Cotterill said: 'It is very early in the week to be commenting on it, but Mark is improving. Whether he improves enough by the weekend, is another thing altogether.
'All I can say at this moment in time is that he is probably no better than 50-50 for Saturday's game.'
Defender Karleigh Osborne is also a doubt for tonight's tie after receiving a stamp on his foot in training. Cotterill said: 'Thankfully, Karleigh has not broken a metatarsal or anything like that. He has a little bit of ligament damage and will be fine.'
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