Image via Mikolaj Barbanell/Shutterstock
After a bit of a break from writing articles post-Euro exit for Poland, we’ve now come to the exciting time of year when the Polish league season roars, or occasionally splutters, into life.
The Ekstraklasa’s return is always a highly-anticipated and highly-memed event, and this year is no different, writing this less than 24 hours before it commences. I have to say I feel equally excited about the 1.Liga for the first time in a while, largely because of it’s new broader free-to-air coverage on Polish television, as well as the fact that there are still a few big names kicking around in Poland’s second division.
Biggest name of all in the 1.Liga, Wisła Kraków, yesterday saw themselves through to the second round of Europa League qualifying after their second leg against Kosovan side Llapi. It’s hard to see Wisła qualifying for the Europa League proper, but depending on how far they get here they might yet benefit the UEFA coefficient even more than they already (very slightly) are.
As for how high-profile Polish players are moving between clubs, there haven’t been any seismic shocks, with arguably the biggest surprise being that Wojciech Szczęsny has not moved to Saudi Arabia. Personally speaking I’d be pretty disappointed if that move had panned out for Szczęsny, but as it is he will most likely be offered around various Serie A clubs in the hope one or the other thinks his signing would be prudent. I find it hard to understand quite why Juventus are getting rid of him so keenly, but what with Thiago Motta undertaking a bit of a sea-change in Turin it does make more sense in that regard. Latest reports suggested Antonio Conte hopes Szczęsny could be Napoli’s new No.1, but those stories don’t seem particularly concrete at this stage.
For the moves that actually went through, biggest is probably Piotr Zieliński’s long-known move to Inter Milan, although I struggle to get too excited over this given we knew this was going to happen when the calendar still read 2023. More intriguing perhaps is Adam Buksa’s move to FC Midtjylland, especially when all signs pointed to a return either to the MLS or the Turkish Süper Lig. I’m really intrigued to see how Buksa gets on in Denmark, and whether he can replicate some of the top form that pleasantly surprised many of us over the course of the last season.
Moves that have gone slightly under the radar include young striker Kacper Kostorz moving to NAC Breda in the Eredivisie, initially on loan from Pogoń Szczecin but with an option to buy. Kostorz was playing really well and was relatively prolific in the Dutch second division last season, so I’m really keen to see how it pans out for him one step up. One of my favourite players, Przemysław Płacheta, also got a move to Oxford United of the English Championship, further cementing his reputation as just a solid Championship-level winger. It’s unlikely Płacheta’s career will ever rise above those levels, but we’ve seen plenty of second-division footballers turn in consistent and sometimes surprisingly good performances that get players in with a chance of playing for their country.
As for those transfers that are rumoured, Bartosz Slisz and Kacper Kozłowski are perhaps the ones that stand out the most, and for opposite reasons. Solid reports from Italy and Poland suggest new Udinese manager Kosta Runjaic wants to work with Slisz again, but given that it is only six months since Slisz left Legia for Atlanta it would be hard to see him move again in such a short space of time. That being said, Serie A is quite the draw, so it could very much go either way. In my opinion, Slisz has played well in the MLS but it might be that a move to Italy takes his game up another level.
Kozłowski is supposedly very close to a permanent move to Gaziantep in Turkey. Not to knock the Turkish Süper Lig, I very much enjoyed what I saw of it last season and how it helped Adam Buksa, Krzysztof Piątek and Jakub Kałuziński all either rediscover some form or in the case of Kałuziński develop his talent further, but considering the very high hopes we had for Kozłowski’s career after he signed for Brighton this does feel like a definite backwards step. I think it has to be suggested at this point that of the three Polish players Brighton have signed in recent years, only Jakub Moder has had a real opportunity for the Seagulls. I don’t want to go as far as to suggest Brighton have wasted the talents of Michał Karbownik and Kacper Kozłowski, but three or four years ago you would’ve expected all three to be a part of the national side on a regular basis by now. This is very obviously not the case, and it is a cause for a bit of sadness, especially when you consider Moder is supposedly surplus to requirements at Brighton now too.
Lastly, a big mention for Karol Linetty becoming the captain of Torino, the second Polish player to do so after Kamil Glik. Linetty quietly became indispensable for a very up-and-down Torino team last season, and they were on the verge of the European places when the Serie A season drew to a close. I doubt Linetty will ever get another chance in the Polish national team given he has always flattered to deceive when he is offered that opportunity, but this is nonetheless something we can really feel good about on Linetty’s behalf.
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