Kristijan Trapanovski admits scoring in the Dundee derby was an even better feeling than playing in the Champions League.
The 25-year-old made himself an instant hero with Dundee United fans when he netted in the Premiership opener at Tannadice last month.
The North Macedonian front man insists the exhilarating derby goal is the highlight of his career so far.
However, he is hungry for more and is determined to hit the back of the net once again against Rangers at home tomorrow.
Trapanovski said: “It was amazing. That was the best feeling in my life.
“I hope the stadium will be full again on Sunday and the same situation comes along and I score again.
“At the end of the day, the most important thing is the team and the result.
“I was expecting a big atmosphere at the derby but the stadium was full and the supporters were singing my name. It was crazy.
“I’ve never experienced that in my life.
“I played in the Champions League with Shkupi, but it was not the same as that first derby.
“We played in the qualification, we had a good first result but after that the results were not that great. So it wasn’t near this experience.
“The Dundee derby would be in first place ahead of those games.”
Trapanovski admits playing in Scotland has already made him a better footballer – just like Bojan Miovski predicted.
Trapanovski turned to his North Macedonia compatriot for advice when United came calling this summer.
Miovski had been a huge hit for Aberdeen, scoring 44 goals in 91 starts for the Dons before a big-money move to La Liga side Girona last month.
The striker only had good things to say about playing in Scotland and helped Trapanovski make up his mind to sign for the Terrors.
He added: “Bojan made a great impact here. I hope I can achieve half of what he did here. If I manage that, I’ll know I’ve done okay.
“I spoke with him before I came here. He told me about the league, about the atmosphere in the league. About the teams and everything.
“He said there is no better place to improve as a player than here.”
Trapanovski has certainly hit the ground running for Jim Goodwin’s side with his performances for the Terrors earning him a first call-up to the senior North Macedonian side during the recent international break.
The player was an unused sub in the two games against Armenia and the Faroe Islands but he admitted it was still a great experience, especially with his United team-mate, David Babunski, also part of the squad.
Trapanovski added: “I was expecting to get some minutes but there was a situation with a red card in the first game. That didn’t allow it.
“But I was happy to be there and hopefully next time I will get on the pitch and make my debut.
“It was great to have David there with me. He played the second game and he played well.
“I got a nice welcome from everyone there, but playing with David is very special every time.”
Trapanovski admitted gaining international recognition was a big factor when he decided to move to United.
He said: “Yeah, it played a big part in me coming here because I think I have improved a lot already in these three months.
“The national team could see that and I got the call-up.
“You can learn a lot from other international players. We have very good players with big careers and it’s a great experience for me to play with them. I’m looking forward to it again.”
Conversation