Determined Neil Lennon has told his Omonia Nicosia stars they are good enough to send shockwaves through the Europa League by conquering Manchester United in Cyprus - even if some of his stars would otherwise be cheering the Red Devils on.
It has the potential to be one of the biggest matches of Lennon's managerial career on Thursday when the former Celtic boss leads his team out to face United at the GSP Stadium in Nicosia. They're yet to get off the mark after Euro defeats to FC Sheriff and Real Sociedad but Lennon believes his team can light a fire under their Europa League campaign by scalping the Premier League giants on home turf.
He knows it will be an extra special day for some in his squad - which includes ex Celtic stars Gary Hooper and Adam Matthews as well as former Hibs and Rangers winger Brandon Barker. And while he refused to name the players who support United, he wants them to take advantage of the "great experience" and pick up a European win for the ages.
He said: "We are all very excited about playing Manchester United for a number of reasons, obviously because they are one of the biggest clubs in the world. It will be a great experience for my players and some of them are Manchester United supporters!
"They are huge around the world so we welcome them here. However, we want to compete and get something out of the game.
"They have beaten Liverpool and Arsenal recently and they seem to have sorted themselves out after a poor start and they have steadied the ship. But every team is beatable on any given day so we must believe we can win. We must endeavour to get something out of the game to give ourselves a foothold in the group."
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