With the summer window closing last night, the last day of the transfer market for this calendar year saw some important moves for Polish players. Here, I’ll summarise the most important transfers, and what they might mean for Poland ahead of the World Cup.
Krzysztof Piątek - Salernitana
Image via @OfficialUSS1919 on Twitter
The striker has been angling for a move all summer after it was made clear he would have no place at Hertha Berlin. I’ve written several articles on Piątek this summer, and he had plenty of options, with clubs as varied as Copenhagen, Fenerbahce and Club Brugge all rumoured to be after his signature at several stages.
Serie A is where Piątek’s stock is still at its highest, and his a league that he spent the second half of last season on loan with Fiorentina. In my opinion, he did really well for them, averaging one goal every three games. Salernitana have brought Piątek in on loan with an option to buy, and whilst some pundits have been disappointed by the move, I think Salernitana is where Piątek has the chance to flourish and make a charge for the World Cup squad.
Jan Bednarek - Aston Villa
Image via @janbednarek_ on Twitter
With a number of additions that Southampton made at the centre of their defence, it was clear for a number of weeks that Jan Bednarek would not be assured of a starting position, despite being a regular starter last season. West Ham were reported to also be showing interest, as well as a ‘mystery’ club from Europe (likely to have been Juventus or Roma).
However, following a serious injury to Diego Carlos, Aston Villa were desperate to finalise a loan deal for Bednarek. The move was completed yesterday without an option to buy.
Aston Villa have had a very poor start to the season, and are hopeful that Bednarek can solidify a defence that has shipped nine goals in five games. He will likely play on the right side of a centre-back partnership, which from a Polish perspective will be helpful as he should be able to strike up a partnership with Matty Cash on that side of the defence.
Michał Helik - Huddersfield Town
Image via htafc.com
The central defender had been expected to leave Barnsley after their relegation to League One was confirmed, with a number of Championship clubs showing interest. Lech Poznań had agreed a fee with Barsnley, but Helik wanted to stay in England.
Huddersfield will be one of the teams expected to perform strongly this season, having reached the play-off final last season. However, they’ve started this season poorly, only getting four points from six games.
Helik will be hoping that good performances in a Huddersfield shirt might see him with an outside shot at a place in the World Cup squad, having often been an unused substitute in the national team set-up in recent fixtures.
Sebastian Walukiewicz - Empoli
Image via @EmpoliCalcio on Twitter
The 22 year-old central defender has joined on a season-long loan with an option and a conditional obligation to buy from recently relegated Cagliari. He was rumoured to be leaving Cagliari for a number of weeks, with several Serie A clubs keeping an eye on Walukiewicz.
He will be hoping to become a regular starter at Empoli, something that he never quite got the opportunity to do at Cagliari. We’ve seen with Jakub Kiwior how well a young Polish centre-half can play in Serie A, and Walukiewicz will be hoping to replicate the kind of performances of his countryman at Spezia.
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