Albion v Crawley
EFL CUP (Carabao Cup) - SECOND ROUND
Venue: The American Express Stadium
Date: Tuesday 27th August 2024
Kick-off: 19:45 BST
Referee: Alex Chilowicz
Assistants: Kevin Howick, Paul Kelly
Fourth Official: Stephen Parkinson
Fabian Hurzeler will treat Tuesday’s Carabao Cup tie against Crawley Town ‘like a Premier League game’ as he looks to build on a successful start to the season.
Albion take on the League One side on the back of two successive wins to kick off the league campaign, including Saturday’s dramatic 2-1 victory against Manchester United.
Ahead of the second round tussle Hurzeler insists he has a lot of respect for Scott Lindsey’s side, who were promoted in May after beating Crewe 2-0 in the League Two play-off final and will be backed by more than 2,000 fans on Tuesday.
“I love cup games,” he said. “This is a cup where you can win something and in life it's always about winning, especially in football. So that's why I'm really excited about this competition, and we will take it seriously. Of course, there might be chances for other players to start and to play. But we will prepare like a Premier League game.”
Hurzeler has already watched Crawley twice this season and is impressed.
He added, “They have a great idea of playing and they are a very good opponent. They always try to build up from the back. I love the ideas from their coach. It's very enjoyable to watch their team playing and that's why we know it’s a challenge and we try to go for it.
“There will be the expectation that you will win so it's different to the Premier League to a certain extent. I expect always that my team does everything to win so in terms of this mindset nothing changes. But we know that Crawley is a good team with good players so it will be a challenge for us.
“In terms of the team there will be rotation, and of course there will also be young players. But on Saturday there were also a lot of young players. We always try to improve young players, especially from the academy to help them make the next step, because the step from the academy to the first team is always big."
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