THE reality of the UEFA Cup final hit me yesterday. We arrived at Manchester Airport after training at Murray Park and the realisation dawned: I�m now preparing for a European final � a situation beyond my wildest dreams when I signed.

THE reality of the UEFA Cup final hit me yesterday.

We arrived at Manchester Airport after training at Murray Park and the realisation dawned: I'm now preparing for a European final - a situation beyond my wildest dreams when I signed.

It is just as well I don't listen to all the criticism that has come my way or I would convince myself I'm the worst player in the world. This season has been an education beyond belief. I have always been a confident player and I believe in myself. That belief will never be more important than tomorrow night, if I am fortunate enough to be involved.

Our golf and country club headquarters are tranquil, not least because we have a room each. It is a welcome change of scenery to the building site that is my new home. I used to stay in a city centre flat in Glasgow but I've resigned myself to the fact that I am a home bird. I've moved back to Ayrshire to be close to my mum and dad, Marilyn and Jack. They have been a great help already, right down to making my dinner for me.

I'm hopeless with DIY, so I've recruited one of my mates to build my new coffee table and rig-up my TVs. I sorted him out for tickets and even helped hold a table leg here or there so he can't complain. The delivery guy was not so lucky. He was a Rangers fan and, understandably, enquired about the possibility . . . you know the answer.

The number of requests has been frightening but the important thing is the family got their tickets: about 20 of the Broadfoot clan will be descending on the City of Manchester stadium tomorrow and it will be my proudest moment in football.

Preparations will begin in earnest today. We left the game on Saturday with two DVDs of Zenit's recent games. I haven't watched them start to finish yet but I saw enough to realise that Andrei Arshavn, their best player, has a tendency to drift on to the left wing quite a bit. Typical. To be honest, I don't like watching DVDs too much because you can get overawed. I know Arshavn is a quality player but there is no point in me convincing myself he is a world beater. I like the challenge to be honest and there have been plenty of them thrown my way this season, not least Adrian Mutu in the semi-final.

Fortunately, since we have individual rooms at the hotel, I don't need to put up with Boydy more than is necessary. Since moving back home, I am his designated driver.

I knew him before but we are really close now and stay five minutes away from each other. Together, we torment the boys, most recently Charlie Adam. He is an easy wind-up and I pretended to be Sarah, the Avon lady, trying to sell him some of my finest products. It was quite convincing.

I will need to get a new sim card if we are to keep it up because they are starting to catch on to us. It has been quite easy to pass the time so far down here. We went out to an Italian restaurant as a team, I think it was Ally McCoist's recommendation, and we were able to relax and unwind. Food is my main superstition, believe it or not.

I am specific about what I eat and if we win and I play well, I keep to it. I'm on a diet of beans and scrambled egg just now - all good protein - but I am nothing compared to the Eggman, Steven Whittaker. I think he must have his own barn.

I also like my sleep. It's one of the many things I have learned from my mentor, Andy Millen. I am a light sleeper at night but it is part of my routine to go for an afternoon siesta when I get back from training. It has helped me a lot this season, especially with so many games in the run-in.

I had my usual shut-eye after I gave my thumbs some exercise on the PlayStation 3.

We split into teams for Pro Evolution Soccer IV but it gets really competitive when we play Super Mario Kart on the Nintendo DS. We hook all our computers up with Bluetooth and race each other. Yesterday, myself, Boydy, Steven Smith and Lee McCulloch took on Burkey, Steven Naismith, the Eggman and Kevin Thomson. They won by a point but cheated and turned their computers off.

The serious stuff starts today but I also have to think about my responsibilities as dressing room DJ. I'm proud of the fact my iPod has been chosen to get the boys up before the match.

I like RnB but it's my dance tunes that won me the job. This will be one of the most important tracklists I have had to compile. Not that we will need any extra motivation for what lies ahead . . .