Aitor Karanka has dismissed claims that the pressure is off Boro when they travel to Manchester City tomorrow.
It has been a week to remember on Teesside with back-to-back home wins helping Boro climb to second in the Championship.
The chance of FA Cup glory now awaits against the Premier League champions, and Karanka has reminded his players they will not just be making up the numbers at the Etihad Stadium.
“If football has one good thing it’s that the budget on the pitch sometimes doesn’t count for everything,” Karanka said.
“If the richest teams won all the time that wouldn’t be football. We’re all excited for the game but we know the surprises football can spring.
“When you have more media interest it’s because you’re doing very well and I’m pleased by that, but we have to keep working in the same way.
“We’re going to play against one of the best squads in the world. The pressure is off us? If you think that, you’re going to concede five or six or seven or eight goals.
“They’ll be thoroughly prepared because they don’t want to lose to a Championship team - but they might have more problems scouting us than we do them.”
Karanka’s men will take heart from their heroic performance at Liverpool earlier this season when they gave Brendan Rodgers’ side a huge scare in the Capital One Cup,
Boro went on to suffer penalty shoot-out heartbreak at Anfield, but that setback has since sparked a scintillating run that has seen them lose only twice in 20 matches.
Karanka insists Boro have a great chance of winning promotion back to the Premier League this season, but says the hard work starts now.
“It’s a big chance. We’re more than halfway through the season and we’re in a high position in the league,” Karanka said.
“We can’t afford to feel like everything is done. The day we think that, we’ll be making a very big mistake.
“Who could have expected that Brighton would beat Ipswich or Leeds would beat Bournemouth? Every single fixture in this league can spring a shock.
“I’ve only been a manager for the last 14 months but I’ve been in football more than 20 years and every single day brings something different.
“Three years at Real Madrid with Jose (Mourinho) taught me to always think just about the next game.”
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