Stephen Kenny has urged his players to continue to make memories and drive St Patrick's Athletic into the group stages of the UEFA Conference League.
The Dublin side have progressed to the play-off round of the competition following Thurdsay night's victory over Azerbaijan side Sabah, having previously beaten FC Vaduz in the second qualifying round.
And now Turkish side Istanbul Basaksehir stand in their way of securing group football for the first time for St Pat’s, which would extend their season beyond the culmination of the League of Ireland campaign, into December.
Shamrock Rovers have already secured a place in this season’s group stage following their victory over Celje on Thursday, and now Kenny is looking to double the contingent, which would be a first for the league - Irish League side Larne are also into the play-off round and will face Lincoln Red Imps for a spot in the group stages.
Kenny knows that tougher challenges lay ahead, however, he was happy to first savour the away win in Baku after watching his side win both home and away against a side that had dispatched Maccabi Haifa in the previous round.
"I am delighted, really thrilled with the performance, the players were excellent," said Kenny.
"I’m proud of my players. Sabah are a very strong team and for us to win home and away speaks volumes for the efforts of my players, and I applaud them.
"To keep clean sheets in both games, they scored six goals against Maccabi Haifa, and they have the capacity to do that as they have very good attacking players, really top class attacking players.
"We were under a bit of pressure early in the game, but the players showed great calmness and intelligence in their defending, and played out from the back really well.
"Tom Grivosti really opened up the play with Anto Breslin on the left and Romal (Palmer) and Jake (Mulraney) linked well, so that quartet gave us a foothold in the game. We dominated that phase of the game and I thought that was important
"I just wanted the players to experience getting through the tie like that and it gives them confidence. Because I’m learning about them and they are learning about me and we are improving together, so it is a big win for us."
Looking ahead to the next round, which is a two-legged shoot-out for a place in the group stages with the Istanbul side, Kenny is plotting to cause a shock that would see his side guarantee an additional six games in Europe before the end of the year.
Renowned for its hostile footballing environment, Kenny said that he will face the challenge in Turkey head on as his side looks to cause a shock to progress.
"We know we are going into a different environment in Istanbul, but that’s what the players are in it for, and the next round is really a gateway for a series of brilliant occasions, so we have to prepare for that next week," he said.
"I haven’t looked at the opposition yet, but when an opportunity exists to get into the group stages, that’s a life-changer for players
"To have 12 games in Europe in a given season, it creates a lot of special moments for their families and for all of those on their football journey, it creates amazing memories and we must strive for that.
"We've had that tonight with an amazing win, but obviously next week we have to step up again, going to face a bigger club in Istanbul and we will fight fire with fire and come up with a plan to cause them problems."
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