Having come close to cup glory in Italy with former club Udinese, David Di Michele is eager for a long run in the FA Cup with West Ham United this season.
The Italian forward will hope to build on his bright performance against Fulham last weekend when the Hammers visit Hartlepool United for a fourth-round tie on Saturday and he believes cup progress is vital to maintain the feelgood factor at the Boleyn Ground.
"I used to watch the FA Cup on television back in Italy and I know it's a prestigious competition. It's important to do well in the cup to give the team a boost for the rest of the season," said Di Michele, who struck the opener in the 3-1 win over Fulham and also provided an assist for Carlton Cole.
The FA Cup may dominate the weekend schedule in a way that does not happen in Italy, where cup games are played midweek, yet Di Michele has fond memories of playing in Italy's equivalent competition, the Coppa Italia.
"Both competitions are prestigious," he said. "I enjoyed playing in the Coppa Italia and I got through to the semi-finals with Udinese. I'm still disappointed that we didn't get any further."
Di Michele struck seven times in Udinese's run to the last four in 2004/05, three of those goals coming in a memorable two-legged quarter-final against AC Milan. He scored twice in a 3-2 first-leg loss at the San Siro, then claimed his side's third as they overturned that defeat with a 4-1 home win. Udinese lost to Roma in the semi-finals but Di Michele had shown his cup pedigree.
The Italy international also revealed - perhaps to the relief of Hammers fans - that he was never the victim of a cup upset either.