On paper this game should be an easy stepping stone for Motherwell. We are riding on the crest of a wave with a five game unbeaten run in the SPL. ICT are in the middle of the First Division and they needed a late goal at the weekend to snatch a point in Airdrie. Besides, the bookies have us as odd-on favourites.
We know only too well that generations of Motherwell teams have demonstrated, on occasion, a weakness when faced with 'easy' games and we can only hope that Tuesday doesn't cause another sad chapter to be written. Jim Gannon has yet to see his team lose to any Scottish team and he'll be as meticulous in his preparation as ever when he plans the downfall of Terry Butcher's team.
There are no reported injuries following the win at Tannadice and we should have no difficulty in fielding a strong eleven. The manager felt that the pairing of Sutton and Jutkiewicz after half an hour on Saturday worked well but there's no guarantee that he'll start them on Tuesday. His habit of producing a customised team for each opponent has paid handsome dividends so far and also keeps the other manager guessing.
ICT were less than impressive in front of the 954 fans who saw them take a late point from Airdrie. We can expect Foran to put in an extra effort at Fir Park but he seems to be used as a target man and our central defenders should be able to snuff out his threat.
The teams drew at Fir Park in May when last the teams met but a similar score after ninety minutes would result in extra time on this occasion. However, if our attitude is correct there should be no need for late night drama and the game should be wrapped up in regulation time. A 2-0 home win should see us in the quarter finals.