Cardiff City manager Brian Barry-Murphy says their EFL Cup quarter-final tie against Chelsea is “everything you want” from the competition.
The Bluebirds have already knocked out Premier League opposition to reach the last eight, beating Burnley in the third round, while also overcoming Swindon Town, Cheltenham Town and Wrexham.
Cardiff have beaten Chelsea twice before in the EFL Cup, back in 1980 and 1986, but they are huge underdogs for their tie on Tuesday.
The Opta supercomputer gives Barry-Murphy’s side just an 8.8% chance of victory at Cardiff City Stadium, and a further 11.3% chance of forcing the tie past 90 minutes. Chelsea are overwhelming favourites at 79.9%.
And in the tournament predictions, Cardiff reach the semi-finals in just 15% of Opta’s simulations, while they are the only side left in the competition deemed to have less than a 0.1% chance of lifting the trophy.
But the League One leaders have the belief that they can cause real problems for their illustrious opponents.
“The anticipation for the game since the draw was made has been everywhere,” he said.
“Luckily, we have tried to detach ourselves from that as much as possible whilst focusing on the league campaign, but now that it’s here, I think that the game is going to be incredibly exciting for everyone.”
Barry-Murphy worked alongside Enzo Maresca at Manchester City, where he led their elite development squad, while the Italian worked alongside Pep Guardiola with the first team.
As such, he is very aware of the threat that the Blues will pose.
“For myself and the players, we still want to show ourselves in the best light and give a good account of ourselves when competing against a side who are the Club World Cup champions,” he added.
“We want to do our best and prepare properly for this game.
“It’s everything you want. We all have aspirations of testing ourselves against those at the highest level of the game.
“Every game that we have played in the competition, we have tried to be on the front foot as much as possible, and to show ourselves in the most positive light.
“It’s what the supporters want to see both away and at home. We will have to try to give those fans something to feel exhilarated by.”
