Cowley's side, now top of the League Two table, are looking to claim another big scalp at Goodison Park on Saturday, but the 40-year-old is under no illusion of the size of that task.

"He (Everton manager Marco Silva) has an unbelievable squad at his disposal, some world-class players, but we've got world-class people," said Cowley.

"It's football, it's 11 versus 11, you never know. We know all about the magic of the FA Cup. We are underdogs again but you have to believe you can win.

"We spoke about it in the 2016/17 season. The odds might be 1000/1 but you've got to believe it's going to be that one time.

"It'll be good to be underdogs. We've enjoyed being underdogs all of our lives. We're looking forward to it.

"We'll break the game down into sections, into six periods of 15 minutes, and we'll try and get through each period at a time. It will be hard work.

"I'm not sure if there's a perfect time to play a Premier League club when you're a League Two club, but we're not going there for a day out. We are going to put on a good performance.

"At the same time, we're very respectful of Everton and their management team. Everton are a top, top team. They will finish in the top eight in the Premier League."

Cowley is hopeful that first-choice goalkeeper Josh Vickers will be fit. Vickers suffered a calf injury at Crewe on Boxing Day and has not played since.

Grant Smith has deputised in the subsequent two games but he is cup-tied having played for Maidstone earlier in the competition.

It could mean an appearance at Goodison Park for Sam Slocombe, who has featured just five times for the Imps this season.

Leading scorer John Akinde could be restored to the starting line-up after the 11-goal striker began on the bench against Port Vale on New Year's Day.

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