Newport boss Flynn: 'We have to believe we can cause an upset'

Newport County manager Mike Flynn believes his side has nothing to lose when we head to Rodney Parade in the fourth round of the Emirates FA Cup on Saturday.

League Two Newport stunned Championship outfit Leeds United at home in the third round earlier this month and are hopeful of pulling off another famous cup shock at the weekend.

Looking ahead to the 5.30pm kick-off, Flynn is remaining realistic, but at the same time is full of optimism over the possibility of causing another upset.

“It’s a free hit,” said the 37-year-old, who embarked on his third spell as a player for Newport – his hometown club – under the management of ex-Spur Justin Edinburgh in 2012 and took over as boss last year.

“I go into every game I ever play, whether it be as a manager or a player, with a lot of confidence and if any player thinks that we can’t win on Saturday then they will probably be sat next to me on the bench or up in the stand because we have to believe that we can cause an upset.

“We’ve got to be at our best. We have to limit our mistakes and let’s be honest, we have to hope that they have an off day. There’s no dressing it up, Tottenham are littered with full international players and have a top-class manager. I’m hoping that the gods are with us on the weekend because that’s what the FA Cup is all about.”

The Exiles have also beaten League Two Cambridge United and League One Walsall at Rodney Parade during their cup run, but Flynn knows his charges will face an altogether different challenge against us.

Asked by journalists how he might deal with Harry Kane, he admitted: “I’ve got to back my players. Let’s be honest, Champions League clubs and Premier League clubs have probably had a special plan to stop him and haven’t so I need my players to concentrate on their game. Yes, he’s one of the best strikers in the world but even he has an off day as well. There won’t be any special plan but the players will know all about him, most of them watch Match of the Day anyway.”

Elaborating on who he expects to face, Flynn went on: “I think (Spurs will) take it seriously whoever is involved because they will all be international footballers. Whether they all play, I don’t know, because they have got a very tough set of important fixtures coming up after this weekend.

“I’m sure Mauricio will pick a team that he thinks will win the game and hopefully, he picks the wrong one.”