THE progress of non-league pair Sutton United and Lincoln City to the Emirates FA Cup fifth round has meant Oxford United’s run has gone under the radar, which suits Michael Appleton down to the ground.

Yesterday’s pre-match press conference was busier than normal, but nowhere near as well attended as last season’s third-round tie against Swansea City.

On first glance a third tier side going to Middlesbrough of the Premier League does not look a promising recipe for an upset.

But that ignores their recent track record – FA Cup wins against Championship sides Rotherham United and Newcastle United have taken the tally of scalps under Appleton to eight.

While the chances of a ninth upset in less than three years tomorrow are slim, the head coach knows his side have what it takes.

“I think there’s a belief in the squad that they can play against top-level teams,” he said.

“Since I’ve been here we’ve also lost on a penalty shoot-out to West Brom and lost 1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday.

“We’ve given sides above us some really tough games.

“I just think we have players who can play at that level and in one-off cup games they’ve proven they can do it.”

Appleton rated the 3-0 win against Newcastle United in the fourth round as the best result of his managerial career.

But the thought of leading a Sky Bet League One side into the quarter-final would lead to a re-think.

He said: “To do that with Oxford would surpass anything.

“I genuinely believed Newcastle was a tougher game because although they made eight or nine changes, you could tell from watching it they really wanted to win the game.

“We rode our luck and grew into the game.

“On Saturday regardless of where they are in the Premier League, they don’t concede a lot of goals and it’s full of talent.

“We’re mindful of the fact that if we’re slightly off it we’ll get absolutely pumped.

“But if we’re at it and they’re slightly off it, you never know.”

Setting aside individual ambitions, a win would be a huge achievement for the club, whose only appearance in the quarter-finals came in 1964.

While Appleton knows all about the significance, he is not planning to give the players a history lesson before the game.

He said: “We’ll make the players aware of the stats, without going too deep into it.

“They know how important the game is, but I don’t want to dress it up too much, other than it’s an opportunity to create another little bit of history, both for the club and themselves.”