Leo Cullen knows that Toulouse are coming for Leinster having targeted revenge against their semi-final conquerors of last year.
And the Leinster supremo has criticised the narrative that his side - brimming with recent Grand Slam winners - are Champions Cup and URC winners in the making.
Last year their double quest ended without silverware as they lost to La Rochelle in the Champions Cup final and then the Bulls in the URC semi-final.
READ MORE: James Lowe out of Leinster's Champions Cup semi-final clash with Toulouse
To succeed this time, the province will have to win their next five games over five consecutive weekends.
Already without Johnny Sexton, they will face Toulouse without James Lowe (calf) but will have Josh van der Flier and Ryan Baird back.
Cullen said: "Everyone was waxing lyrical about the semi-final (last year) and it was as if we had to just turn up for the final.
"But you're going up against a team like La Rochelle - unbelievably heavily-resourced - you're up against the top teams and they only lap up all that media stuff that all you guys have delivered.
"You've got to control the hype - that's the game.
“I don’t think we’ve earned that right yet (to be called Leinster's greatest side). We won nothing last year.
“It’s about trying to deliver your best performance, and how do you do that?
“You make sure you bloody prepare well.”
Cullen's remarks were similar to hard-hitting comments made by Limerick hurling boss John Kiely on Sunday.
After a close-fought Munster SHC clash with Waterford, Kiely blasted the over-hyping of his All-Ireland champions and claimed his players were affected by their status as hot favourites.
"I'm just worried internally," he confessed. "Like, Limerick won last year, we didn't and that's all I remember.
"All I remember is the disappointment of losing in Marseilles and losing at home in the RDS against the Bulls. That's what is freshest in my mind."
Cullen added: "It's just disrespectful to everyone we play against. I'm sure it's just winding up the narrative in their minds.
"I said it about hype, it's week on week on week. Toulouse are the most successful team in the competition, they lost at this stage last year.
"What do you think their motivation is? It's through the roof.
"They didn't send their starting XV to Paris (against Stade Francais) last week, so what do you think their motivation is?
"We've tried to narrow the gap and we're still chasing them. They're still the most successful team in the competition and it will have stung them losing last year.
"It's clear what their focus is - it's coming after us. We need to make sure we're ready for it and do everything we can to deliver on the big days."
Cullen referenced the big money invested in Top 14 clubs as he pointed out how difficult it is to conquer Europe.
He hit back at Leicester boss Richard Wigglesworth for his claim after Leinster's quarter-final win over the Tigers that the province had the advantage of being heavily financed, Cullen referencing Saracens' alleged €50m loan write off when Wigglesworth was a player there.
There are over 37,000 tickets for the Aviva Stadium semi-final but it may be a struggle to fill the venue as remaining tickets cost €75 each.
After a well short of capacity RDS crowd witnessed a tired Leinster performance in that URC semi-final defeat, Cullen is desperate for a full attendance to get behind his side on Saturday.
"I'm sure Toulouse, what's freshest in their mind is losing against us because of the pride they have in the competition," he said.
"It's just like we have pride so yeah, hopefully the Aviva is a sea of blue. It's so hard to win because there are other teams that are desperate to win.
"La Rochelle after last year's Champions Cup final, they're back in the port and there's 200,000 people out in force.
"That's what it means to that community - and we want it to mean as much for our community because it needs that sea of support."
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