Fulham boss Chris Coleman has urged Fulham to banish their reputation as perennial cup flops.
The Cottagers manager has turned the club into an established Barclays Premiership force since his arrival in 2003, but cup success has remained elusive.
Fulham have reached just one FA Cup quarter-final in recent years and in the last 12 months they have suffered humiliating home defeats to lower league Wycombe Wanderers and Leyton Orient.
Coleman admits he has been embarrassed by his record and is desperate for his side to follow West Ham’s lead and enjoy a long overdue cup final appearance.
He said: “There is no way getting away from the fact that we have been very disappointing in the cups.
“We have been going about our cup games the wrong way and it’s time we went about them the right way because I’m desperate for a run.
“West Ham got to the final last year and if we get a bit of luck and have some decent draws along the way, then you never know what might happen.”
“Maybe in the past we weren’t as focused as we should have been because we were in survival battles and to be honest we always have survival at the back of our minds – we’re only nine points clear of the bottom three as it is.
“But the FA Cup is very important for us and we want to make progress – it’s one of the most famous competitions in the world. It’s certainly not impossible to do well in the league and the cup.”
Fulham’s first priority is to overcome a potentially awkward trip to Coca-Cola Championship club Leicester.
The Foxes caused an upset last season by knocking out Tottenham in the third round, but Coleman insists he is thankful not to have been handed another minnow after his team’s horror-show against Orient last season.
He added: “When you play teams a long way below you, the pressure of being knocked out is even greater.
“Leicester are a big Championship club with a great stadium and it will be a tough game.
They will field their strongest possible team and so will I – there won’t be any question of resting people. We have everything to lose and they have nothing to lose so the heat is all on us.”
