Central defender Gjoko Zajkov, who will be moving to French club Rennes, wrote a heartfelt message to his now former club, Rabotnichki.

The transfer of 19-year-old CB Gjoko Zajkov to French top division club Rennes is surely one of the best deals in recent memory for a player from the domestic league.  Zajkov, who will be presented by Rennes early next week, wrote a heartfelt message on Facebook thanking Rabotnichki for helping him fulfill this transfer.

Zajkov’s message translated in English: “Now that it’s officially done, as a new member of French top division club Rennes, I would like to thank several people for their belief in me and their support this past season.  I express big thanks to the management of the football club Rabotnicki, its club president Dragan Popovski, manager Igor Angelovski and the rest of the coaching staff.  To my now former colleagues at the club,  with whom we achieved many successes and who helped me grow as a player, I wish them many more successes in the future.  I would like to say that this transfer is a team achievement that should be shared by all. In the future, I wish Rabotnicki much success in the Champions League qualifications and to compile more trophies domestically.  I’m hopeful that at my new club I will represent Macedonia in the best light possible.”

Rennes scouted Zajkov during his appearances for the Macedonian U21 national team, and the French side quickly identified Gjoko as a player to strengthen their defense.  Moving from Macedonia to France is a drastic leap in quality, but Zajkov is a hard worker who will aim to reward Rennes for their confidence in him.  Gjoko will now need to quickly get to work in learning French and adapting to the much faster tempo in France.