DANNY MURPHY: Scott McTominay and Alejandro Garnacho MUST start for Man United against Newport… players that are prepared to graft are crucial in preventing complacency from setting in against smaller sides

From queuing for the toilets to hearing every insult the fans shout, Manchester United‘s stars are stepping out of their comfort zone at Newport today.

I played in FA Cup ties at Yeovil, Accrington and Kettering when I was in the Premier League. Personally, I loved it — I’d had previous experience of the lower leagues starting my career at Crewe — but for some of my team-mates, much less so.

The dressing rooms are minuscule compared to the relative luxury we were used to. You’d have to queue to use a cubicle and, without being too graphic, they were close to the changing area so you could hear and smell everything!

When you first arrived at the stadium and got off the coach, their supporters would be excited to see you, often asking for a picture or autograph. It would lull you into a false sense of security, thinking the experience wouldn’t be so bad. 

But once the game started, they’d be on top of you and you would hear every word. Playing for Fulham at Accrington all I got was, ‘You’re finished, Murphy’ and ‘You’re too old, Murphy’. We won the game and reached the Europa League final that season.

Players like Scott McTominay and Alejandro Garnacho will bring the energy required to control the game

My record against smaller sides was good. I took it as a personal pride thing, I wanted to show why I was a Premier League player and they weren’t. 

If the mindset is right, the better set of players will win. But sometimes it’s not — and that is what United manager Erik ten Hag has to be very careful about.

Gerard Houllier went beyond the call of duty at Liverpool to ensure there was no complacency. We had to sit through a 40-minute video analysis of Stoke even though they weren’t very good at the time. We won 8-0.

Starting at the right tempo is important. The cup upset I remember is losing at home to Crystal Palace for Liverpool. 

It was only at 2-0 down in the last 10 minutes that we started running around like lunatics to stay in the competition. It was too late by then.

Harry Maguire, with his experience outside of the top flight will also be an asset for Erik ten Hag’s side

I’ll be at Newport today covering the game for the BBC and, for me, Scott McTominay and Alejandro Garnacho, players with fire in their bellies, have to start. 

So too, if fit, must Harry Maguire, because he has that experience of life outside the Premier League. Someone like Christian Eriksen, maybe hold him back for the Premier League.

The incentive is there for United. In 2001 my Liverpool team had a tricky tie at Tranmere. We came through a difficult afternoon and went on to win the trophy in the Michael Owen final against Arsenal.

Another banana skin avoided was against Yeovil. Jerzy Dudek made some saves before I set up Emile Heskey and then scored a penalty. 

I hope for Ten Hag’s sake World Cup winners like Raphael Varane and Casemiro treat the competition as seriously as I did.