Image via @LaczyNasPilka on Twitter
Two goals from Polish captain Robert Lewandowski, one from the penalty spot, secured three points for the Biało-Czerwoni in an uncomfortable evening at Stadion Narodowy.
Looking to bounce back from the crushing disappointment of the 3-2 loss to Moldova last time around, Fernando Santos named a strong and well-balanced starting XI. However, the atmosphere became increasingly toxic as Poland struggled to break down a stubborn Faroe Islands. With the ball consistently being pushed around in front of the opposition, the home crowd mostly cheered for speculative shots and half-chances. This is not to say Poland did not have opportunities, but they did not register a shot on target until nearly half an hour in.
In many ways the second half was much better. After an hour, Sebastian Szymański was introduced and he made a huge difference in terms of the way the ball was being recycled. After Lewandowski managed to overthink himself out of a relatively straightforward one-on-one with the goalkeeper, it looked for all the world like it wouldn’t be Poland’s day.
Luckily, as Poland continued linking move after move, a headed pass from Piotr Zieliński struck the arm of a defender inside the penalty area. After a short VAR check, a penalty was awarded which Lewandowski scored from with just over 70 minutes gone.
Lewandowski then scored a wonderful goal ten minutes later, having once more overthought an opportunity to shoot earlier in the move. Waiting until he was surrounded by defenders, and with the ball completely at a standstill in the penalty area, he delicately curled a finish into the far side of the goal.
Despite the overwhelming negativity, especially in regards to the first half and having to rely on a penalty to eventually break down the Faroe Islands, it was a fairly dominant Polish performance. This is not to say it was relaxing, far from it. Flashbacks to last time out in Chisinau, where Poland dominated for so long yet came unstuck, were at the forefront of the mind. Had Poland been more clinical it would’ve been the thrashing some pundits predicted, and I imagine we will see a more measured performance on Sunday against Albania in Tirana.
That all being said, if I were in charge of the PZPN I’d start making enquiries as to the availability of Marek Papszun. Fernando Santos has been in charge since the start of 2023 more or less, and yet there has been little if any positive progress from the teams we saw under Czesław Michniewicz. Perhaps this current side is less negative when it comes to the systems employed, but the level of performance, style and results are a far cry from getting back to what felt like real progress with Paulo Sousa at the helm.
As for Group E, it is absolutely wide open. Czechia, Albania, Poland and Moldova are only separated by one point each, and considering this was supposed to be a group where Czechia and Poland were battling it out for first spot, you’d have to say that there have been some hugely underwhelming performances by the favourites.
Poland are still likely to make it to Euro 2024, be it via automatic qualification or the incredibly convoluted play-off system, but games like last night have not done anything to settle the nerves.
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