Rakow Captain Fran Tudor Emotional Ahead of Return to Hajduk's Poljud Stadium

Fran Tudor, captain of Polish club Rakow, is preparing to face his former team Hajduk Split in a pivotal Conference League playoff match at Poljud Stadium. The first leg of the tie is scheduled for Thursday evening, with the winner securing a spot in Europe's third-tier club competition.

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I'm excited, happy, and proud. It doesn't matter [playing against Hajduk], but it will be very nice to play with them. It will be emotional, my heart already started pounding as I approached Poljud.

Tudor, who previously played for Hajduk, admitted to feeling a surge of emotion as he approached the stadium. "I'm excited, happy, and proud," he stated, adding, "It doesn't matter [playing against Hajduk], but it will be very nice to play with them. It will be emotional, my heart already started pounding as I approached Poljud."

Despite the personal significance of the match, Tudor emphasized his team's primary objective: qualification for the Conference League. Rakow has been experiencing a dip in form at the start of their season, but Tudor stressed the team's current focus. "Right now, we are most concentrated on qualifying for the Conference League," he said.

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Right now, we are most concentrated on qualifying for the Conference League.

His own participation in the upcoming game remains in doubt due to an injury sustained during the previous qualifying round. "I'm slowly returning, I hope to play. Everything depends on training, we'll see now how my shoulder reacts," Tudor explained. He also reflected on his fondest memories at Hajduk, highlighting the people he worked with and a debut goal against rivals Dinamo Zagreb.

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I'm slowly returning, I hope to play. Everything depends on training, we'll see now how my shoulder reacts.