Mark Kennedy said the environment created at the Soper of Lincoln Elite Performance Centre does not facilitate complacency.
The Imps are just two wins from reaching Wembley Stadium in the Papa Johns Trophy, yet City’s head coach maintains the focus always remains fully on the task at hand in each game.
He said: “We have heavily geared our season to focus on taking games one at a time and so we don’t allow players to look too far ahead and get carried away.
“If we ever felt as though people were, then we’re all accountable for bringing them back down to earth, but we don’t have that.
"Irrespective of whether we’re playing in the league or the various cup competitions, we strictly focus on the game and ourselves.”
City topped Northern Group E before defeating Morecambe on penalties and then Everton U21 to reach the quarter-final stage.
Fellow Sky Bet League One side Accrington Stanley provide the next challenge in a fixture Kennedy is expecting to be a stern test.
He added: “If you’re not on your game, you’ll get punished against any team in League One.
“They’ve got an outstanding manager with a tried, tested and trusted method who has his players very well drilled.
“It’s a game as tough as any we’ve had all season, but we go into it with the mindset we can win.”
