Johnson pleased Bramall Lane task comes first

Despite his side finishing two places above the Blades and holding second-leg home advantage, the 57-year-old has scoffed at the notion of the Glovers being favourites to advance to Wembley in the two-legged tie.

Regardless of the Blades’ poor recent form, lamentable play-off history and the misgivings of many of their fans, Johnson – fresh from taking the Glovers to their highest finish in the Football League – is adamant that United have all the weight of expectation on their shoulders.

He is also unequivocal on another thing, namely that Yeovil – beaten in the League One play-off final by Simon Grayson’s Blackpool in 2006-07 – are the outsiders going into this year’s end-of-season lottery in the third tier.

Johnson, recently offered a new contract, said: “We have got to go there and try and win the game and I am sure they will do the same.

“They will be two cracking games, but the pressure is on them because we know they are desperate to get promoted and we have got to be aware of that.

“We have got to make sure we have got our game together.

“Over the past couple of weeks, for a couple of halves, we have not got our game together.

“But we are not the ones expected to win; neither at Sheffield or in the final if we get there. We are the underdogs.

“We will be the only ones not under pressure, it will be the other team.”

Mindful that the game will be decided over 180 minutes and not ninety, Johnson’s primary target at S2 tonight is being in a position to finish off the job in front of a likely sell-out crowd in Somerset on Monday (kick-off 1.30pm).

Johnson, glad not to be heading to Bramall Lane for the second instalment, added: “The first game obviously matters when it comes along, but we know what we have got to do and we want to do that in front of our own fans.

“We certainly didn’t want to go to Sheffield United (for the second leg) and the game be close with 30,000 Sheffield United fans cheering on their team.

“The first game is a little bit ‘suck it and see’ and generally, for the second, everyone knows what they have got to do.”