A makeshift Western Sydney Wanderers, without marquee Federico Piovaccari, will be charged with making up for the disappointment of last year's surprise Westfield FFA Cup exit when they host Brisbane Roar on Tuesday night.
Four months after reaching their second successive A-League grand final, Tony Popovic's men were dumped out of the inaugural national knockout competition at the hands of Adelaide City, the only top-flight team to fall victim to lower-league opposition in the 2014 round of 32.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Popovic acknowledged that being victims of the tournament's first significant giant-killing was motivation to do better 12 months later.
FFA Cup preview: Wanderers v Roar
"We were disappointed last year," he said.
"We certainly didn't go to Adelaide believing it would be easy. We weren't good enough on the day and Adelaide went through, deservedly so.
"But we get another chance a year later. The competition is obviously growing. Everybody's embraced the Cup. It's a fantastic initiative from the FFA. And we'd love to be like [holders] Adelaide and get some more silverware.
"To do that you have to get through a tough first round against Brisbane to have a chance. We're looking forward to the game, to see where we're at."
The Wanderers are in the early stages of their preparations for the new A-League campaign, which is still two months away.
There have been plenty of changes to the make-up of the team, meaning there's sure to be some unfamiliar faces on show in Parramatta.
"We'll have a squad ready," Popovic said.
"This is our fourth week of pre-season. We'll be ready for October, where we want to be. But we're … good enough to put on a good performance tomorrow and get through."
The game against Brisbane will arrive too soon for Italian marquee striker Federico Piovaccari, while Dimas Delgado, Andreu Guerao and Alberto Aguilar, whose signing was announced on Sunday, will all require time to adjust to life in Australia.
"It's always difficult to say how long it'll take," Popovic said.
"Individuals take time. The new boys that have come in, some settle in quickly, some need more time due to fitness or a change in culture for our foreigners."
