Johnson: Cup run has made me feel like Pied Piper

Lee Johnson, the Bristol City manager, has said the impact of his side’s shock victory over Manchester United has left him feeling like the “Pied Piper” around the city as he prepares to face Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City in tonight’s League Cup semi-final.

Bristol City have defeated Premier League opponents Watford, Stoke City, Crystal Palace and United in a memorable run to this stage of the competition, and Johnson said there had been a noticeable “feel-good factor” in the city.

“It has been brilliant,” he said. “I was picking my little girl up from school and the teachers came out, with all the kids. I’m like the Pied Piper around the playground. It’s good to give back, and the legacy part of it is that, hopefully, it brings in new fans. The young kids who came to that United game will hopefully have been hooked.”

The difficulty of facing the runaway Premier League leaders over two legs has not been lost on Johnson. “I think they are up there with the best England has ever seen,” he said. “They have world-class players in every position, and they have world-class players behind that and world-class players in their under23s as well, so it will be a real challenge and we have competed really well against the top teams this year.

“Obviously, to beat a side like United, and to beat them fairly, gives us confidence to go into what is 180 minutes, minimum.”

Johnson praised Guardiola for the speed with which he has been able to “fast-track” his work at Manchester City, adding: “The real challenge is going to Oldham and trying to do it on a £900,000-a-year budget … but I am sure he would.”