Three Sheffield United legends explain how to approach an FA Cup semi-final as Blades face Man City

Two decades on, as his old club prepares to meet Manchester City in the last four tomorrow afternoon, the former defender is utterly convinced they can spring one of the upsets of the century by following a few simple rules. The ones which, during a compelling and controversial 90 minutes at Old Trafford, helped Kozluk and his colleagues give the aristocrats from north London a God Almighty scare.

MORE: Two Blades team mates on their last four clash

“You’ve got to be absolutely certain that you can win it and I know we were,” he tells The Star, reflecting upon that memorable encounter between a side Neil Warnock was still striving to lead out of the Championship and one which would go on to finish as runners-up in the Premier League. “I never went into a game back then thinking I was going to get my a**e kicked and none of the other lads did either. If you’ve got that mentality, if you’ve got that spirit which means you’re ready to fight for every inch of grass, then you’ve always got a chance. I’m telling you, nothing is impossible.”

MORE: The man who was there when United last reached the final

Although United also reached this stage of the competition in 2014, losing to Hull City 5-3, the challenge facing Paul Heckingbottom’s men at Wembley today bears remarkable similarities to the one which confronted Warnock’s team after being paired with eventual winners Arsenal. Arsene Wemger’s team was in its pomp, the triumph over Southampton sandwiched between two top-flight titles as the likes of Thierry Henry, Robert Pires and Dennis Berkamp lit-up the English game. But it was David Seaman and referee Graham Poll who turned out to be the villains for United, with the England goalkeeper producing a remarkable save to deny Paul Peschoisolido an equaliser following Freddie Ljungberg’s earlier effort. The Swede’s finish came after Poll, having already failed to spot a foul on Wayne Allison, then inadvertently impeded a challenge from Michael Tonge as he attempted to retrieve the ball.

“What is there for the guys to lose? Nothing,” insists Peschlsolido, ahead of the trip to Wembley. “Neil told us ‘This is 90 minutes that can change your lives.’ So go out there, run harder than you’ve ever run before, further than ever before and give it everything. Stages like this, it’s a chance to make a name for yourself which anyone with aspirations to get to the highest level should be wanting to do.”

“I was speaking to Pesch about that this week,” adds Kozluk, who started and finished the tie. “Was it a great block or a poor header? Pesch switches off when I mention that to him, and he lets me know that. But the fact that we even joke about it shows how sure we were that we could win.”

MORE: Semi-final advice from an amazing fan

Paddy Kenny, Seaman’s opposite number at United, has no doubts about the fact it definitely wasn’t the latter; labelling the intervention as “something else.” “I didn’t realise the ball had actually gone behind him until afterwards,” Kenny admits. “From the other end of the pitch, it looked great at the time. Then, when I saw the replays, I was just in awe.”

But, echoing Kozluk’s reminder about the importance of self-belief, he is also adamant United can beat a City team stuffed to the gills with world class talent. Stuart McCall, who began the match with Arsenal in midfield, is now manager Paul Heckingbottom’s assistant at Bramall Lane.

“Listen, it’s a huge occasion,” Kenny acknowledges. “But Neil didn’t change anything beforehand. We went through the same routines. The only tweaks were tactical work but that was normal anyway. It meant we were as relaxed as possible. I was always nervous in the hotel on the morning of a match but, by the time we got to the stadium, all that had gone. People like Kozzy were so important because they’d make you laugh.”

An accomplished full-back, Kozluk also performed the role of dressing room joker. The importance of that job, as Kenny outlined, is often under-estimated.

“When we were about to go out, I might have said something like ‘Let’s keep the score down to ten’ or whatever,” Kozluk admits. “The gaffer was great at stuff like that too, just putting you at ease. But we all wanted it.

“The thing about days like this are that, at times, they can be surreal. The walk out, because of the noise, you can’t really hear any songs as such. It’s a blur. But you can’t be waving to the family or anything like that, even though it’s nice to know they’re there. Your mind has got to be completely on doing your job.”

Kozluk, who now works for Stoke City, sees similarities between the group Heckingbottom has also led to the brink of automatic promotion and the one he was a part of under Warnock. That is something which also leads him to predict, if City have an off day, United can reach the final for the first time since 1936.

“They’ve already knocked out a top side in Spurs during the earlier rounds. So they know they can compete if they’re at their best. Okay, for that to happen City might need to be below par. But it happens. The thing about these matches is that it might only be afterwards that you really comprehend what you’ve been involved in. So go out there and grasp the moment. Believe.”

MORE: United duo make Wembley pledge