Dai Young has put Cardiff on red alert for their European Challenge Cup opener against CA Brive at the Arms Park on Saturday (17:30).
The Blue and Blacks host a Brive team who sit at the bottom of the Top 14 and have recently changed coaches.
But Young believes the former French giants will go into the encounter with no pressure and will present a major threat to his side as European action kicks off in the capital.
He said: “Brive is a big, big club with a huge tradition and they are a real threat. Coming here. where they are, struggling in the league, they can cast aside the pressure and give Europe a real crack.
“We have to be very mindful of that. You don’t get many bad Brive teams whether they are at the top or bottom of the table so we’re expecting a real tough game.
“You don’t quite know how they will look at it. In the past teams have looked upon Europe as a way of kick-starting their season, trying new players and combinations and some may concentrate on the league.
“So we don’t quite know what to expect but they can’t go outside their squad and they have a quality squad. They are big and abrasive as most French teams are with some quality behind.
“They will be looking forward to playing here with a bit of pressure off but it’s all about us. It’s about us improving from last week, first and foremost managing the physicality up front playing in the right areas and taking opportunities when we get them.
“If you want to do well in Europe , you have to win your home games and this is a potential banana skin. If we don’t get this right and lose at home, and that could easily happen if we don’t play to our potential , then it’s a real mountain to climb. It’s a massive game for us and the pressure is on us.”
Cardiff go into the encounter on the back of a successful trip to South Africa, where they became the first Welsh club to claim a BKT United Rugby Championship triumph in the Rainbow Nation and returned with five points.
They continue to fly the flag for Wales in the URC, sitting seventh in the table, and with a change in competition, Young believes his side have plenty to build on in and exiting period.
He added: “We enjoyed South Africa. It’s obviously a tough place to go and play but two weeks away together helps the squad bond, we had some good training sessions and a real good result in the first game. The second game, the Bulls were a bit too much for us but some of the younger guys got game time against a quality outfit which will only add to their experience and development.
“Going into another competition this week. We’re looking forward to playing in Europe, it’s always an exciting part of the year, we know how important home games are so this is a big game.
“We’re expecting a real tough game but we’re build a bit of momentum and we have some big games coming up.”