Facing Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City is a daunting prospect for most Premier League teams, but according to Bristol City boss Lee Johnson, the Robbins are ready for the the challenge.

“There’s no doubt we’re an extreme underdog against Manchester City, so it’s very similar to when that Kilmarnock side beat Celtic in the cup final,” Johnson told BCFC TV in an interview.

Bristol, who play in the third tier of English football, have collected the scalps of Stoke, Crystal Palace and most notably, Manchester United, back-to-back to reach the last-four of the EFL Cup.

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And Johnson showered his players with praise as he stated, “The boys are in credit in this competition. We just have to give it our all. It can be done”.

The irrepressible Sky Blues are unbeaten in domestic competitions this season and many have pegged them as the greatest side of the Premier League early despite them not having won any silverware yet.

“This tie is obviously played over 180 minutes, so it will only be half-time after Tuesday evening.

We need to do our best to ensure we stay in the tie coming back to Ashton Gate.”

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“The players have been exceptional so far, Johnson continued as he added, “The effort they’ve demonstrated to beat four Premier League teams en route has been phenomenal.

“Now they find themselves in the semi-finals of a major cup competition and facing the best team in the country right now.The concentration levels it will take to ensure we don’t get infiltrated in our back-line will be huge.

“In saying that, I do believe in the qualities in our squad and the challenge is to make sure we play our game.

“We definitely did that against Manchester United in the last round, so that’s a box ticked. Now we have to do it against a side that is used to having up to 85% possession in games,” added the 36-year-old manager.

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The first of the two-legged semi-final takes place on January 9 at the Etihad Stadium (19.45 PM GMT/01.15 AM IST) while the return leg at the Ashton Gate is scheduled for January 23.

In the other semi-final, Arsenal take on arch-rivals Chelsea in the first leg at Stamford Bridge with the return leg at the Emirates Stadium set to take place on January 24.