The Poland Euro 2020 squad is spearheaded as always by captain, record scorer and record appearance-maker, Robert Lewandowski.
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Euro 2020 squads: Every confirmed team for the 2021 tournament so far
Poland Euro 2020 squad
- GK: Lukasz Fabianski (West Ham United)
- GK: Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus)
- GK: Lukasz Skorupski (Bologna)
- DF: Kamil Glik (Benevento)
- DF: Maciej Rybus (Lokomotiv Moscow)
- DF: Bartosz Bereszynski (Sampdoria)
- DF: Jan Bednarek (Southampton)
- DF: Pawel Dawidowicz (Hellas Verona)
- DF: Michal Helik (Barnsley)
- DF: Kamil Piatkowski (Rakow Czestochowa)
- DF: Tomasz Kędziora (Dynamo Kyiv)
- DF: Tymoteusz Puchacz (Lech Poznań)
- MF: Przemysław Frankowski (Chicago Fire)
- MF: Grzegorz Krychowiak (Lokomotiv Moscow)
- MF: Piotr Zielinski (Napoli)
- MF: Mateusz Klich (Leeds United)
- MF: Kamil Jozwiak (Derby County)
- MF: Jakub Moder (Brighton & Hove Albion)
- MF: Przemyslaw Placheta (Norwich City)
- MF: Kacper Kozlowski (Pogon Szczecin)
- FW: Dawid Kownacki (Fortuna Düsseldorf)
- FW: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
- FW: Arkadiusz Milik (Marseille)
- FW: Krzysztof Piatek (Hertha Berlin)
- FW: Karol Swiderski (PAOK)
- FW: Jakub Świerczok (Piast Gliwice)
Poland Euro 2020 squad: Team profile
Three years have passed since Poland’s disastrous World Cup showing in Russia, and it’s difficult to say that confidence has returned.
Poland topped their qualifying group with a couple of games to spare, but an underwhelming 2020/21 Nations League campaign has tempered expectations somewhat. Narrow qualifying victories against Latvia, Israel and North Macedonia were achieved, but collecting results against the stronger sides in the latter tournament – Italy and the Netherlands, in particular – proved a far more difficult proposition altogether.
It wasn’t necessarily the defeats, but rather the manner of the performances which failed to inspire fans. They didn’t inspire much confidence among players, either: when asked about coach Jerzy Brzeczek’s tactics after November’s 2-0 defeat to the Italians, captain Robert Lewandowski stood in silence for a deafening nine seconds before finally crafting a response that still managed to indirectly criticise his boss.
With a breakdown in the relationship between the team’s undisputed star man and its coach, unsurprisingly it was the latter who came off worse. FA president (and legendary former forward) Zbigniew Boniek wielded his axe in mid-January, replacing Brzeczek with Portuguese boss Paulo Sousa. Following his appointment, Sousa immediately reached out to his skipper and heavily praised his recent individual successes – keen to avoid the tensions that cost his predecessor his job.
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The litmus test, though, will come in the performances, and given his late appointment, the former QPR, Swansea and Leicester boss hasn’t much time to get the team singing from his hymn sheet. It meant that March’s World Cup qualifiers (a win, a draw and a defeat) had to be partly treated as trials for the Euros, with the added jeopardy that Sousa’s job could have been at risk had he failed.
For some older members of the squad – Lukasz Fabianski, Kamil Glik, maybe even Lewandowski himself – this tournament might be the last chance to attain something special with the White Eagle on their chest. Others will see it as their opportunity to stake a claim as the future of the team. Either way, it’s hard to argue against the fact that, on paper, this is the strongest Polish side in years.
That’s on paper, though. On the pitch, there are still hurdles to overcome.
Poland Euro 2020 squad: Who is Poland's best player?
Robert Lewandowski
Multiple-time Bundesliga top scorer? Tick. All-time record Polish goalscorer? Tick. FIFA Player of the Year? Tick. The only place Lewandowski has yet to properly show his class is at a major tournament. At 32, he may not get many more chances, and will be keen to make this one count.
Poland Euro 2020 squad: Who is Poland manager?
Paulo Sousa
he least-experienced international manager at the finals, Sousa will have still only presided over three competitive matches by the time Poland get underway against Slovakia. His playing experience should earn him respect from the squad, though.
Poland's past Euros record
Poland first qualified for a European Championship in 2008, and have been ever-presents since. Euro 2016 was the first time they made it out of the group stage however, with a jaunt to the quarter-finals.
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