Blood thicker than water for Dudek

Jerzy Dudek may admit that his "heart bleeds" when he considers the plight of his former club Feyenoord, but with the Dutch club out of the Group H reckoning he is in no doubt who he will be supporting when they meet a KKS Lech Poznań side targeting a place in the last 32.

Feyenoord decline
Real Madrid CF goalkeeper Dudek spent five successful years in Rotterdam between 1996 and 2001, playing a major role as Feyenoord claimed their 14th Eredivisie title in 1999. Yet since his departure to Liverpool FC for €7m at the start of the 2001/02 campaign things have unravelled at De Kuip and, seven years on, the side are 12th in the Dutch standings and their UEFA Cup ambitions over after failing to pick up a point from their first three group games. "Feyenoord can no longer claim to be among the big three in the Netherlands," said Dudek. "Now, they are frequently beaten by more modest teams."

Dutch colony
"They have very good, experienced players mixed up with some hot prospects but it doesn't seem to be working and I'm not sure why," the 35-year-old added. With first-term opportunities at the Santiago Bernabéu limited by Iker Casillas, Dudek reluctantly has plenty of time to follow Feyenoord from afar, sharing notes with the five Dutch players on Madrid's books – soon to become six when Klaas Jan Huntelaar arrives in January. "We have a big Dutch colony at Real; some players are Feyenoord fans, some support Ajax and others PSV," the veteran explained. "We talk about the sides with fondness but on Wednesday I'll be supporting Lech, not my former, beloved club in the Netherlands."

Lech hope
Dudek played for GKS Tychy and KS Sokół Pniewy in Poland before leaving for Feyenoord, but blood is thicker than water for the man capped 58 times by his country. Lech need a win to have any chance of progressing to the Round of 32 and having held AS Nancy-Lorraine and RC Deportivo La Coruña while losing only narrowly at PFC CSKA Moskva, there is room for optimism. "Lech did not win their home games against Nancy or Deportivo, but they showed their ability and proved they can be a danger to anyone," Dudek said. "I hope they can maintain that form in Rotterdam as it would be very nice to see my compatriots going to the next stage of the competition. Feyenoord are vulnerable at the moment so Lech hopes lie with pushing from the start and trying to score as quickly as possible."