Dom Jefferies believes City can take plenty of confidence from their Carabao Cup victory at Derby County as they prepare for the start of their Sky Bet Championship campaign.
Jefferies scored the Imps’ second goal in the 2-1 win at Pride Park, with a committed team performance ensuring his side progressed to the next round.
He said: “It was a great performance and win. You could see how hard everyone worked for each other.
“It was obviously tough when their goal went in and we thought that might change the momentum, but we stayed strong and continued to create chances.
"Our press worked brilliantly in certain moments and created opportunities for us. The first goal came from a set-piece, which were massive for us last season, and the second came from winning the second ball and lads working really hard to get up the pitch."
Jefferies applied the finish for City’s second following an excellent pass from Freddie Draper, and was quick to praise his team-mate for his role in the goal.
He said: “Freddie has been unbelievable. He was brilliant last year and he’s come back this season really strong and really fit.
“It was a great pass for my goal. He put it perfectly into my stride and it was just down to me to shoot and hope for the best.”
City also showed the defensive resilience which underpinned last season’s success, limiting Derby’s opportunities as the hosts looked for a way back into the tie.
Jefferies said: “It was the same script as last year in terms of everyone working really hard for each other. We shuffled as a team, pressed as a team and defended as a team.
“Lads were throwing their bodies on the line. Deji Elerewe and Tom Hamer were doing that, and there’s just a massive work ethic throughout the whole group and a mentality to try not to concede goals.
“The lads who came on were brilliant, especially the new lads who have only just come in this week. They held the ball up, created chances and won fouls.
“That’s massive in the final 10 or 15 minutes because it gets the team up the pitch and gives everyone a breather.”
Attention now turns to City’s Championship campaign and the visit of Middlesbrough, with Jefferies adamant the Imps will approach the step up with confidence.
He added: “Every team in this league has great quality all over the pitch, but we’re not going to shy away from anything.
“We’re still going to get after teams. We’ll defend well, tackle as a team and keep that same mentality from last year. We’ll go after every game and there’s no fear in the group.”