Marcus Kane is wary of a backlash from league leaders Larne as they bid to get over their Irish Cup hangover.
The Invermen's 'double' dream was ended by Ballymena United following last week's semi-final defeat.
Kane is hoping to add to Larne's misery when they meet at Inver Park this evening as Glentoran continue their pursuit of a European place.
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But the Glens captain, who insists European football is a "priority" for his side, knows Tiernan Lynch's men will be a wounded animal.
“We have too much to do in terms of winning the League, but European qualification is a priority for this club," said Kane.
“Larne were knocked out of the Irish Cup last week...I suppose it was a big shock when they were beaten by Ballymena United, so I think that makes our task that little bit more difficult.
“That defeat could work either way for them; it could give them the jolt they need to go on and get the points they need to win the title, or it could give their confidence a bit of a battering.
“We’ve had good, tight games against Larne this year, but we’ll be going there for three points, there is no doubt in my mind.
“We need to take as many points from these games as possible.
“The first two games are massive for us, away to Larne and Linfield.
“But we’ll focus on Larne, and look no further than that."
The Glens have found their form at the right time with three wins on the bounce scoring 10 goals and conceding only one.
Jay Donnelly and Danny Purkis have both hit three goals apiece in the run and Kane is delighted to see his side in such free-scoring form.
“It was great to have the boys scoring goals at the right time," he said.
“Even when they haven’t been scoring, other lads have chipped in with vital goals.
“We’ve got a good goals tally and we haven’t been too bad defensively either."
Kane is hoping for a big finish to "salvage" Glentoran's season.
With Larne and Linfield first up in the post-split fixtures the skipper knows they have to keep standards high.
“We have five massive games to salvage our season,"said Kane.
“It’s important we set the bar high against Larne.
“We were three nil up at half-time against Portadown, but Rod (McAree) still gave us a bit of a rollocking because he thought we could play better.
“I thought we controlled the game a lot better in the second half.
“We were well rested up going into the game having had a few days off because of the international break, but we all know there are bigger tests up ahead, starting at Larne."
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