HULL City's Robert Koren is targeting another tilt at a major tournament after sampling an 'unforgettable' World Cup.

Before joining the Tigers on a free transfer last month, the 29-year-old playmaker captained Slovenia at the 2010 finals in South Africa.

Koren's summer ended in disappointment when England edged out Slovenia in a narrow victory at the group stage, but the experience has whetted Koren's appetite for more.

Slovenia's qualification campaign for Euro 2012 begins with the visit of Northern Ireland tonight – a fixture screened live on Sky Sports One.

And Koren is hoping it will be the first step towards another shot at the big time.

"The World Cup was a special moment, it's something I will never forget," he told the Mail.

"It was a fantastic experience for us all. We did well but it was a shame we couldn't get past the group stage, which was our goal.

"We are a very small country so it was a very big thing for us to go to the World Cup. It is the biggest tournament you can get in the international game.

"Once you play in a tournament like that, you want to play in more and we have a fresh challenge in front of us to focus on."

Although new to the City faithful, Koren is the poster boy of Slovenian football.

Idolised among a population of just 2m, the former West Brom midfielder has helped guide his country to 19th in the FIFA rankings.

Slovenia have been drawn in a tough qualification group for Euro 2012 and must overcome Italy and Serbia, two other sides to feature at the World Cup, if they are to reach the finals in Poland and Ukraine.

Koren will be back among the City fold in time for the trip to Cardiff next weekend, but says he will always take great pride in starring for his country.

"It's a big honour for me and I am very proud to be the captain of my national team," he said.

"That brings some more responsibility but it's something that I enjoy.

"So far, me and my team-mates have done well to get to the World Cup and we showed we can be a good team to cope with the international level.

"The World Cup is behind us all and we have a group of players who want to be successful and go to the European Championships."