WEYMOUTH goalkeeper Zaki Oualah revealed he would “love” to knock former club AFC Wimbledon out of the FA Cup first round and insisted: “We can beat them”.

Oualah, 27, is likely to start against the Dons on Saturday when the League Two outfit visit the Bob Lucas Stadium (3pm).

He spent seven years in total at Plough Lane as a training goalkeeper before earning his first pro deal in 2021.

Oualah, whose family are Algerian, has played a major part in Weymouth’s cup run, making crucial saves against Welling and Havant as the Terras booked their place in the main draw for the first time since 2007.

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Added media interest in the first round means Weymouth will pocket £5,000 from a BBC highlights package, in addition to more than £18,000 in prize money already gained.

An extra £41,000 is on offer to Saturday’s winner and Oualah was instantly reminded of how big the tie is when the draw was made.

He told Echosport: “At the time I was doing some coaching and my phone didn’t stop vibrating. I got about ten messages from friends to say you’ve drawn Wimbledon.

“I was saying to my friends and family that I want to draw Wimbledon in the cup, it would be brilliant to play against them.

“If we’re on it on the day, it’s a game we can win.”

Oualah admitted his former teammates have largely steered away from trash talk prior to the game.

He said: “Sometimes when you’ve been somewhere you don’t always speak to people after you’ve left, or they don’t speak to you.

“I haven’t really spoken to many of the boys about it. I’d like to think people don’t like bantering, just incase they banter them and lose.

“It’s more pressure on them because they’re the higher-league opposition.

“It’s a great occasion. This is my third first-round proper, it’s a proper game, and it’s always great when you play League opposition as a non-League team.

“It’s a chance to put yourself underneath the spotlight.”

Asked if he had any extra motivation to win against a former club, he said: “For sure, I know a lot of people there and I’d love to beat them.

“I have nothing but gratitude for people at the club but to beat them would be amazing.

“We’re setting up to win, we’re not setting up for a day out. It’s 11 v 11, all the old cliché stuff.

“If we’re on it on the day, we play our game – hopefully it’s not one of their best days – we can beat them”

And Oualah said an expected crowd well into four figures could play a pivotal part in the outcome.

“A hundred per cent, the supporters are great here,” he said. “They get behind the boys and are very passionate.

“I’d like to think it’s going to be a bit of a cauldron on Saturday with the fans getting behind us and really putting pressure on Wimbledon.

“I don’t want to give away any secrets we’ve been working on, but if we do our jobs well and physically prepare right and are on it mentally, I hope we’re going to cause them problems.”