LEICESTER City captain Matt Mills is looking forward to facing his hometown team when Swindon travel to the King Power Stadium tomorrow.
The 25-year-old lived in Shaw for much of his childhood and went to school at Bradon Forest, near Purton.
His potential was spotted by Swindon and he spent nine years on the books of the club’s youth team before he was snapped up by Southampton.
But much of his family still live in the Swindon area and consequently, tomorrow’s game holds more significance than most for Mills.
“All my family are from there so it is a strange fixture for me in that sense,” the defender told the Advertiser.
“I went to school in the area and was with Swindon from when I was five until I was 14, and came up through the system along with the likes of Michael Pook and Matty Collins.
“But Southampton came in for me and as they were in the Premier League at the time, my head was turned and so I joined them.
“It will be good to face Swindon and I am looking forward to the game.”
Leicester are big favourites for the tie, especially with Nigel Pearson’s side in good form at the moment.
A bullet header from Mills helped the Foxes to a 2-0 win over Southampton at St Mary’s on Tuesday and while the former England Under-19 international does have a soft spot for Town, there is no doubt in his mind as to what result he is hoping for tomorrow.
“It is a game we feel we can win,” he added. “We are at home and we have hit a bit of good form recently.
“The FA Cup is something we are taking very seriously and though we will not take Swindon lightly, we are going for the win.
“In the last two years I have reached the quarter final and it seemed to rub off on our league form in the previous clubs I have been at.
“I hope that is the case again this year.”
Leicester striker Jermaine Beckford scored a hat-trick against Nottingham Forest in the previous round and he will no doubt be hoping to score the goals to keep the Championship side’s FA Cup run going.
“Climbing the league is obviously the priority for us, but if a little run in the cup helps to breed some confidence then it can only be a good thing,” said the former Leeds striker. “We’ve got a difficult game against Swindon tomorrow and they’re going well in their division, so we can’t look too far beyond that, but cup runs can be great for the players and the fans.”
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