Baggies chase big cup boost

Tony Mowbray will order Albion to treat Cardiff like Wembley tonight as they try to give their promotion campaign a huge pre-FA Cup boost.

Mowbray’s Baggies meet Dave Jones’s Bluebirds in the Championship before both sides head into massive weekend semi-finals.

And Mowbray is demanding the same intensity from his players tonight that they will show on Saturday against Portsmouth.

“I would expect every player tonight to step up and give a performance,” said Mowbray.

“The players want to be in the Premier League and they are striving for that.

“The FA Cup is nice for them and it is going to be a big occasion on Saturday, but I think the minds of the players are focussed on trying to win tonight. 

“Saturday will take care of itself when it comes. The adrenaline will be flowing come Saturday and the motivation will be there with the stadium, the environment and the pitch.

“It will look after itself, but we have got to go to Cardiff and create an atmosphere and an intensity among our players that shows everybody that we mean business.”

Defender Leon Barnett could return tonight after sitting out the last two matches with a hamstring injury. His presence has been missed with Mowbray’s men conceding four goals from crosses in their last two matches.

But the manager also paid tribute today to the returning Neil Clement, who played the second half of Saturday’s 4-3 win against Colchester after spending a month on loan with promotion-chasing Hull.

The double promotion winner will be in tonight’s squad and looks have edged ahead of Slovenian Bostjan Cesar, who he replaced on Saturday.

“Clem went away to get some games under his belt, just as much for his own confidence and belief that he can play at the level and intensity required with the problems he has had with his knee.

“He has done that and, in my conversations with him prior to coming back, he was very adamant that he felt great and he could come back and do a job for us.”