New Role For Tomasz

United goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak made a visit to his home city of Wroclaw last month as part of his new role as a Friend of UEFA for Euro 2012.

Wroclaw will play host to some of the matches during next year’s European Championships which are being held in Poland and the Ukraine, and Kuszczak recently sat down with ManUtd.com to talk about his involvement in the tournament and his ambitions for the coming year for both club and country…

So Tomasz, tell us more about your role as a Friend of UEFA for Euro 2012…
I feel very honoured to be involved and very proud that my home city will be hosting some of the games. It was nice to go back there recently and see some familiar faces. Everyone is working hard to get the city ready and I know it will be a great success.

What should potential visitors know about Wroclaw?
It might not be one of the most famous cities in Poland but it’s one of the most beautiful. Some of the buildings have been there for hundreds of years and are pretty spectacular. The Main Square, or ‘Rynek’ as it is called in Polish, has everything – great restaurants, cafés, bars and shops. I always spend time there when I go home. There are also some nice parks and I’d definitely recommend a visit to Wroclaw Zoo.

What’s your favourite part of the city?
I’d have to say the Main Square. You can spend all day long there. Wroclaw is a special place to me – it’s where everything started. My first school was there, I met my friends there and my first club is there, Slask Wroclaw. They’re in the Polish First Division which is decent league. I initially started in the youth team before moving up to the first team. They were great times.

How excited are the Polish people about playing host to Euro 2012?
Everyone is very excited. We all know it’s a big challenge for our country. There are a lot of things that need to be put into place before the tournament but everyone is working very hard on that and I know my country will put on a great tournament.

How’s the stadium in Wroclaw looking?
I went to see how it was coming along when I was over there and it looks fantastic. It’ll be finished this year and will hold just over 41,000. I was there at the start of construction and to mark the occasion we buried a time capsule underground which included a Champions League ball that I’d signed.

What would it mean to you to represent your country at the Championships?
It would be a dream come true. Things have been a bit up and down with the national team because I've not played too much football for my club. I’ve tried to be patient and wait for my chance and have always tried to do my best when I’ve been given it. It’s not been easy though. Every player wants to play for their country, but that situation is determined by what’s happening at your club. I hope I’ll get my chance here. I think I deserve one. But it’s not important what I think, it’s about what the boss decides. Sooner or later I need to play regular football and I hope by doing that it will give me a ticket to the European Championships because it would be an honour to be involved.