Kris Twardek is enjoying his first season with a Bohemians side riding high in the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division, but the Canada international is happy to put thoughts of a first league crown since 2009 aside when they face Hungarian side Fehervar in the first qualifying round of the Europa League on Thursday evening (kick-off 5.30pm).
Twardek arrived at Dalymount Park after a 16-month spell at Sligo Rovers, having been released by Millwall in the summer of 2018.
His performances for the Bit O'Red caught the eye of Keith Long, who swooped for the winger at the end of last season.
Bohs' late charge up the table means they are now only two points behind leaders and arch rivals Shamrock Rovers, but Twardek and his colleague only have eyes on Europe this week.
"This will be my first opportunity to play in Europe and it's a young squad as well, so I think for a lot of young players it's a great opportunity and it will develop us as a whole as well," the 23-year-old told RTÉ Sport's Tony O'Donoghue.
"It'll be a good experience... but without fans coming, it's unfortunate for them.
"They were there for the whole start of the season and they deserve that experience too."
The Gypsies go into the game as massive outsiders at Arena Sosto against a cosmopolitan Fehervar side that drew 1-1 with Paksi at the weekend, but the underdogs couldn't be in better form, Twardek admitted.
"Any time you go into a big match, you want to be confident," he said.
"We've five wins in a row. Playing with confidence, you can't compare it. It makes you more confident on the ball, it makes you more excited to do things. As a group, we're really confident."
PLAYER FOCUS | Kris Twardek
— SSE Airtricity League (@SSEAirtricityLg) April 22, 2020
Club | @bfcdublin
Position | Winger
2020 Matches Played | 5
2020 Goals Scored | 1
2020 Assists | 1
Great impact since signing 🙌#LOI | #GreatestLeagueInTheWorld pic.twitter.com/kQHeYjRuRl
Bohs have utilised Twardek's trickery to some effect this season, and he added: "Sometimes you just fit into a certain structure and into a certain team. The way we set up, it suits my attributes and my attributes suit the team."
The top-of-the-table clash against Shamrock Rovers is fast approaching, but the Ottawan and his colleagues can afford to prioritise Europe, for now.
"If that was next week, we'd be so excited for it," he said.
"But with this big game, and for us it's a real attraction for players to come to the club and be a part of European football, that's our main focus for now.
"But obviously it's just exciting to have big matches coming up."
His native Canada may not be recognised as a hotbed of football talent, but Twardek believes that's changing, with the nation's burgeoning talent now having a Champions League winner to look up to in the form of Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies.
The domestic game is booming and Canada can look forward to co-hosting the 2026 World Cup with the United States and Mexico.
"I was telling some of the boys at the club that football is now the biggest grassroots sport in the country – more than ice hockey," Twardek revealed.
"It's definitely growing. With role models and the unbelievable talent of Alphonso Davies, there's going to be more and more people that will aspire to be him. It's fantastic.
"There's a new league in the country, there's the World Cup being hosted there in in 2026, so there's a lot of positives for Canadian football."
