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They enter the doubleheader as favorites and according to paper assumptions, they should be closer to advancing. The Polish club Raków Čenstochová even has a player in the team who can be of exceptional importance for the “medaliki”. That footballer is Milan Rundič, and ŠPORT.sk asked him a few questions.
Polish club Raków Czestochowa has a player in the team who can be very valid and maybe even decisive for them before the first match of the 3rd preliminary round of the UEFA European Conference League (on Thursday, August 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the Anton Malatinský Stadium).
During his career, he played up to six years in Slovakia, and we can safely classify him as one of the most successful. He was part of the biggest successes of AS Trenčín in the entire history of the club, as he was one of the main elements of the two-time championship “double” and later, after transferring to Slovan Bratislava, he won another title, as well as two triumphs in the Slovak Cup.
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Milan Rundič, Raków Czestochowa
Source: rakow.com
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Experienced Serbian stopper Milan Rundič he is now a player of the Polish Raków, with whom he also continues to collect successes, as he reached the Polish Cup with Częstochowa, as well as two Super Cups.
We spoke with the 30-year-old native of Belgrade before the first match against Trnava, which has a special meaning for him due to his “Slovak past”.
Rundič revealed to ŠPORT.sk that his knowledge of Slovak football and Spartak can be very valuable for Raków and also stated that against Trnava it will not be extra special for him, as a former Slavist. If he was Slovak, he would have experienced it more.
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Milan Rundič and Erik Jirka in the match Slovan Bratislava vs Spartak Trnava
Source: TASR
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He is a very valuable player for Raków in front of Trnava
You are returning to Slovakia after three years. Are you looking forward to this match?
“Certainly yes. I can’t wait, even if it’s only for a short time, but it’s a big game, so I’m already very happy about it. I also know some of the players and I still have a few friends there today. I have already played against Trnava and at their stadium many times, so I hope I will be successful on Thursday as well (laughs).”
We also looked into your statistics and you have a high success rate against Spartak. In the jersey of Trenčín and Slovan, you faced Trnava a total of ten times, and only in two cases did your team lose. So you have a lot of experience, which can work in Raków’s favor, don’t you agree?
“As for success, I would definitely like to improve this balance (smile). I think it is such a minor advantage for me and my club, to which I can pass on more information about Trnava and Slovak football in general.
Thanks to this, we can be even better prepared for the match. Certainly better than if we were playing against some club from a completely different country. We will talk about everything in the club and I will pass on to them everything I know about Trnava. I believe it will help us achieve our goal.”
What are you going to tell Rakow about Trnava?
“From the very first game I played against Spartak, I knew that it was a very unpleasant team. It is not easy to play against them at all. They are combative and can be quite tough, even aggressive. That sticks in my mind when I think about the fights with them.
But it might not be such a problem if we can match them with this hardness. We also tend to play this way. Finally, everything will be revealed on the field. You may have your information, but the reality can often be different. We will try to play our football, they will try to play theirs and we will see who is better prepared.”
You even played against several players of the current Spartak squad, so that can also work in your favor…
“Certainly yes. We will also see how many will be available to coach Michal Gašparík, but I know several of them, so that is also definitely an advantage for us.”
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Martin Bukata, FC Spartak Trnava
Source: TASR
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You said that you still have many friends in Slovakia. Are you planning to meet someone before the game?
“Yes. Coincidentally, I am very good friends with Maťa Bukat. I hope we will find time and go for at least one coffee (laughs).”
Friends off the field, but everything goes sideways on the lawn. Has there already been any “hecvacka” between you?
“We don’t give each other anything on the field (laughs). We will shake hands and whoever is better will win. But that’s also why I was pleased that the draw gave us Trnava. We could have won it last year, but in the end we played against Rubin Kazan. It was already released this year. It will be even more interesting (smile).”
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MIlan Rundič scores a goal in the jersey of Slovan Bratislava
Source: TASR
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If he were a Slovak, he experiences it more as a former Slavist
You played the last three years in Slovakia in the jersey of Slovan – in the colors of the biggest rival Spartak. Will Thursday’s match be even more special for you?
“Frankly, neither. I’m not Slovak and I don’t experience it as if I were a Slovak football player who, years later, would play against Trnava in the jersey of a foreign club. It doesn’t affect me that much.
But that doesn’t mean I’m not looking forward to the meeting. As I said before, every match I played against Trnava was also about great emotions. It will surely be the same now. I am convinced that there will be a great atmosphere in the stadium, so I probably know what to expect.”
In order to be able to play against Spartak, you first had to manage the matches with the unpleasant Astana. In the end, you overwhelmed them with six goals and didn’t concede a single one. Can you benefit from that match before the clash with Spartak?
“We can, since we managed these matches excellently and according to expectations, but Trnava will be a different match, because it is a different opponent. That’s why we can’t look at what happened before. We have to look at the next opponent, and therefore the next match.
Only one opponent is important for us now, and that is Trnava. We only concentrate on them. I believe that we will get the best possible result from there. At best, a victory.’
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FC Spartak Trnava vs FK železierne Podbrezová
Source: TASR
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Trnava’s weak start in the league is not considered authoritative in Raków
You have been working in Poland for the second year. Would you be able to compare the qualitative difference between our and the Polish competition?
“I would say there is more intensity in the game. The game is a bit more active here and there is also a greater quality of individuality. I don’t mean Raków specifically, but the league as a whole. The Ekstraklasa also offers a great infrastructure and works well systemically.
When I was still playing in Slovakia, there was not so much pressure on the field and it was also not a rule that we used to prepare as hard before the match as I experience in Poland. Here it is already very intense two or three days before the duel. I think that in Poland it is at a slightly higher level than in Slovakia.
But it is also due to the fact that there is a Slovan in Slovakia and other clubs do not catch on to his quality. In addition, Slovan is currently even better than some four years ago and is definitely at the European level. At least that’s how he’s perceived here.’
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It looks like you are still watching the Slovak league, is that right?
“Yes. I try to watch it whenever I have time. Specifically, I follow the clubs in which I played, namely Trenčín and Slovan. Sometimes I watch one of their matches. I follow the league and I also saw some matches of Spartak, so I know what awaits us in the fight against them in Slovakia.”
Spartak does not have the best start to the new season, having lost points twice in a row at home against a newcomer. How do you perceive it in Raków before Thursday?
“We don’t look at it in any special way, because it is first of all up to them, how they can deal with it and what mood they will have in the club after such results. Whether they are under stress or not, I don’t know at all. Moreover, there is a difference between playing in the league and the difference in cup Europe. So we can’t take it seriously. Maybe they were already thinking about the match with us, it’s hard to say. However, we will only focus on us and our game.”
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Milan Rundič also played against Spartak Trnava in the AS Trenčín jersey
Source: TASR
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Raków is said to have a smaller advantage
In a double match, you are the paper favorite, which is also indicated by the value of both teams. That of Raków is almost four times higher than that of Spartak. Do you think it can be decisive?
“I don’t think so and there’s no need to focus on it. It’s one thing on paper and another on the field, so we can’t watch it.”
You play the first match in Trnava. Do you think this is an advantage or not?
“I would say that’s more to our advantage, because it’s always better to play first at the opponent’s place and then in front of your own fans. So it might be less of an advantage for us.”
Raków is an ambitious team, which is also confirmed by the results of the last seasons. Is the club aiming to play in the Conference League group?
“Definitely! But first, we have to eliminate Trnava in order to think about it. But Spartak also wants it. Both clubs want to fight for participation in the playoffs so that they can still have a chance to play the group. It will be a difficult match, but our ambitions are clear.”
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