Poland
Factsheet:
Euro 2012 Group A: 08-06-12: Poland - Greece, 12-06-12: Poland - Russia, 16-06-12: Czech
Republic - Poland
FIFA/Coca Cola World Ranking: 65
Previous European Championship Appearances: 2008
Qualifying record: -
Interesting facts:
Poland is the lowest ranked team participating in Euro 2012.
Poland has never won a single match at European
Championships and scored only one goal.
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The manager Franciszek Smuda, an influential
representative of the local coaching elite of the last two decades, had to
finally get this job. He declared to prepare a team targeted on the home Euro,
though nothing can justify the catastrophic qualification for World Cup 2010,
when his side finished the group in the 5th place ahead of San
Marino.
Everything is there to give Poland a successful Euro, especially the home crowd and the group without any European superweights.
Poland still needs to complete their first win in the competition history,
which they hope to do in the Euro 2012 opening match against ex-champions from
Greece.
As Poland was free from qualifying matches, Smuda had
two years to experiment with his team, playing almost 30 friendly matches. The
recent remarkable results were draws against Germany and Portugal and a win
over Argentina.
The match we remember: Greece have never left
Poland unbeaten in their 8 previous visits. Most of the meetings have been
friendlies, with the last competitive game taken place in April 1987, where the
Greeks won 1:0 in a non-decisive European Championship qualification match. Another
single goal separated the teams in a friendly match, where Poland won against
the team to be crowned as European Champions a month later.
The match we remember: The teams have
only met in friendly matches.
The match we remember: The disastrous for both teams World Cup 2010 qualifying campaign is
the only period where the two sides met in competitive matches. Each of the
sides won their home match.
Two profiles:
Jakub Blaszczykowski: He has perhaps got
the most complicated surname among the Euro 2012 particiapants. But Borussia
Dortmund fans will surely tell many more features describing the Polish
captain. His football career has received a lot of assistance from his uncle
Jerzy Brzeczek, the former captain of Poland national team.
Already 20-years old, Kuba, as he prefers to be
called, won a prize for the best midfielder in the Polish league. He was only
21 when he was offered a contract by Borussia Dortmund, where he became fan-favorite
and received the Player of the Year award for the year 2008, meanwhile being
crowned as Polish Footballer of the Year. He was named as national team captain
at 24 year age.
It’s hard to say how successful Poland would perform
at Euro 2008, had Blaszczykowski not been injured. Now the Polish fans will
pray to have their captain included in the final squad, otherwise it will not
be easy for the hosts without the great team spirit and fantastic pace he can
provide. After incredible achievements with his German club, Blaszczykowski is
more than confident to bring success to his national team.
Robert Lewandowski: He has always been
together with his national team since he turned 20. The result is 13 goals and
40 caps. If now 23 year old Lewandowski continues like this, there is no
record in the Polish football history that will stand in 4-5 years.
Lewangoalski, as fans love to call him, is another Borussia
Dortmund delegate in the Polish team. His scoring record has been on the same
high level wherever he has appeared. He is the top scorer for the German champions this season.
He owns several profitable commercial contracts in
Poland and is a constant criticizer of his national team coach. If these two
factors don’t play a major role in the nearest future, particularly this
summer, Lewandowski’s scoring flair will surely help him become one of the most
prominent strikers in Europe for the next several years to come.
My prediction:
A pretty young and ambitious team ready to fight to
satisfy the home crowd: a good choice for Smuda to make. We have seen lots of
teams doing well due to this factor. The possible success is going to be led mainly
by two Arsenal goalkeepers Fabianski and Szczesny together with Borussia
Dortmund trio Piszczek, Blaszczykowski and Lewandowski. The last three profiles
are actually the best asset the Polish team owns. Not only they are having a
fantastic season, but also regularly playing together in the same club. They
know each other well and Smuda counts on their interplay.
On the other hand tournaments like European
Championships require much more than the current Polish side is capable of. It
is difficult to judge the Polish chances, as they did not show their real potential
in the qualification round. However, the hosts cannot rely on a really
well-played team, which is an absolute minimum for a team without superstars.
Smuda has been searching for his starting eleven for quite a long time and it
is not clear whether he has already decided on the squad or not. Cases like unnatural
retirement of Zewlakow, suspension of two key players Piszek and Wasilewski and
critical remarks of some leading players don’t boost Smuda’s reputation.
It is always interesting to have the host nation
remain in the tournament as long as possible. This will be tough for the White Eagles.
I consider their second match as crucial. If the Poles beat Russia, they have
all the chances to advance from their group. If not, their points from other
two matches should not be enough.
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* 6+2=3-1 7-7: played 6, won 2, tied 3, lost 1,
scored 7, conceded 7
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