Danny Cowley believes that his side can use the experiences gained at Premier League opposition to continue their momentum in SkyBet League Two.
City have lost just once in their last 10 league outings, with the last Saturday defeat falling in October.
While Danny's side were knocked out of the FA Cup last weekend in a 2-1 defeat at Everton, he believes that confidence can be taken into Saturday's trip to Swindon.
“The players are really good this week, we are much better for the Everton experience than what we were sitting here last week," he said.
“We have played one of the best possession based teams in the country and that taught us so much about our defensive organisation.
“We have now found a new benchmark which we will carry forward, there is no better challenge than that game for our defensive structure. We feel like it was a great experience for us and whenever you play against teams like Everton in that environment of 40,000 you can’t help but be inspired and we will take that into a tough run of games.
“We have just played four games in nine days over the Christmas period and then we had to prepare for Everton in the FA Cup third round, now we have hit the January transfer window so it has been really busy and really intense for us.”
The January transfer window has seen goalkeeper Sam Slocombe return to parent club Bristol Rovers following his loan spell at Sincil Bank. The 30-year-old featured for the Imps on five occasions including their Carabao Cup tie with Blackburn Rovers.
Speaking highly of the shot-stopper, Cowley praised him for his efforts during his time as an Imps player: “Sam was excellent from day one, he is a great kid with an excellent attitude and great application.
“He was a pleasure to be around, when we brought Sam in we were fearful that Josh [Vickers] would be out for the first half of the season, that didn’t materialize and it has been tough for Sam, we respect that.
“It is important for him with his contract at Bristol Rovers coming towards the end that he goes out and plays regular football. We understand that and it is best for all parties that he does that.”
The Imps boss turned his attention to this weekend’s SkyBet League Two clash with Swindon Town, after the hectic Christmas and New Year schedule of five games in 14 days.
Danny finished by speaking about the setup of the Robins, who were in the Premier League side for the 1993/94 season.
“They are a really good team, they are a big club. We had a Premier League side in Everton last week and not so long ago Swindon were up there," he added.
“They have got good players and are well sorted, they would expect to be at the top of this division fighting to get their place back, to where they should be. For me, in terms of their size and infrastructure they are a minimum Championship club with the facilities and support they have.
“I think they have got some real pace on the counter attack. They have got players behind that counter who can feed their quick players who carry real threat.
“They had a positive result last week and have had some positive results over Christmas, drawing to Mansfield. We expect a really tough game and it is a fantastic ground. It is a lovely pitch and a game we a really looking forward to.
“We understand the threats Swindon pose to us and we are in a good place ourselves following a tough run of games. It has been lovely to get the team together back on the grass and take some learning from the Christmas games and put it into practice.”
Over 500 Imps are set to make the trip to Wiltshire. Without a ticket but wanting to attend? Supporters can pay on the day.
