FIFA World Cup: Poland aim for rare group stage progress in Russia

The golden era for Poland, which saw it take third place at the 1974 and 1982 tournaments, ended when Brazil beat Poland 4-0 in the last 16 at the 1986 finals in Mexico. 

Zbigniew Boniek, former Poland great and now FA president, famously said after the defeat that he had hoped the national team would qualify for the next four tournaments in a row.

His words were later dubbed ‘Boniek’s Curse’ as the Poles had to wait 16 years for another World Cup appearance. It has played at only two finals this century and finished bottom of its group in 2002 and 2006. However, at the 2016 European Championship it reached the quarter-finals to emulate its past success.

The nation is hoping that Adam Nawalka’s team can now reach the knockout phase on the world stage, although it has been drawn against Senegal, Colombia and Japan in a tricky Group H. “The team is more experienced but can’t be overconfident,” goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, who has 60 caps including two at the World Cup in Japan and South Korea, said. 

“However, going into another round should be a realistic goal, albeit the group is very equal and we’re not used to games against such unusual opposition. The first game against Senegal will be the biggest test and the most important for us because it will determine our status in the group,” added the ex-Liverpool and Real Madrid keeper.

“Unlike the four previous big tournaments, we won the first game at Euro 2016 and went through so it shows the importance of a good start.” Ahead of the World Cup, Nawalka, who switched to three at the back after the qualifying campaign, faces the same old problems, which are the depth of his squad and players struggling to find form at their clubs.

Some of the players moved clubs after the Euros but failed to establish themselves, while others got injured or lost form leaving the national team manager with some serious doubts. “Many lads had problems but today nobody’s raising the alarm,” Dudek said. 

The good news for Poland is that Napoli striker Arkadiusz Milik has returned from a second serious knee injury ahead of the tournament, which gives the manager more options up front. His presence in the team also takes some of the pressure off its Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, by far the most important player in Nawalka’s World Cup plans.

FIFA ranking: 10 

Previous tournaments: This is the eighth World Cup for Poland and the first since 2006. It lost 6-5 after extra time against Brazil in its 1938 debut before twice finishing third, in 1974 and 1982. However, this century Poland failed to reach the knockout phase in 2002 and 2006, finishing fourth and third in its group respectively. Its last appearance in the last 16 was in 1986.

Form guide: After booking a place in Russia, Nawalka switched from a back four to a three-man defence for tactical flexibility. The transition was difficult, resulting in a goalless draw against Uruguay and 1-0 defeats by Mexico and Nigeria in friendlies — the worst run of results under Nawalka. The Poles claimed their first victory with the new formation by beating South Korea 3-2 in March thanks to Piotr Zielinski’s last-gasp winner.

Prospects: Poland’s strong performance at Euro 2016 meant its fans looked to the 2018 World Cup with a sense of hope. Reaching the quarter-finals two years ago was the team’s best run at a major tournament for decades. Poland has been drawn against Senegal, Colombia and Japan in Russia. Group H is considered one of the most unpredictable and even at the finals. Optimism has also been undermined by problems the players have faced at their clubs. The team is not as strong as at Euro 2016 but the main objective remains to reach the last 16 for the first time in 32 years.

Poland’s talismanic striker Robert Lewandowski changed his approach to his domestic season at Bayern Munich in order to arrive at the World Cup in the best possible form both mentally and physically.

Lewandowski is vital for the Polish team, just like Lionel Messi for Argentina, Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal or Harry Kane for England. One of the world’s most complete centre forwards for some years, he scored 16 goals out of Poland’s 28 in qualifiers, beating Predrag Mijatovic’s record for a single UEFA qualifying campaign.

Reaching the European Championship quarter-final in France two years ago brought some long-unseen international success for the Poles, but, surprisingly, the team’s biggest star Lewandowski had a quiet tournament. The all-time Polish top scorer found the net just once, blaming fatigue after a demanding domestic season.

Now approaching his 30th birthday, Lewandowski realised that without proper rest he might also struggle in similar fashion during the World Cup in Russia. So, last December, he urged his club bosses to bring in a back-up striker for him. Bayern recognised it was not a bad idea and a month later Sandro Wagner arrived in Munich.

“That was the plan,” said Lewandowski, after winning a fourth Bundesliga title with Bayern and a sixth overall after the pair he had earned at Borussia Dortmund. 

Bayern secured the title against Augsburg while the Polish captain sat out that game on the bench and Lewandowski ended up playing his fewest minutes in a season since his debut 2010-2011 Bundesliga campaign at Dortmund.

It still did not stop him creating history in April when he came off the bench against Hannover to score his 105th league goal for Bayern, the most by any foreign player for a German club. He also took a third Torjaegerkanone prize as the season’s top scorer in the league, a feat achieved before only by Germans Gerd Mueller and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

“Since the beginning of the year I tried to slow down and play optimally. I didn’t want to play each game and butcher myself,” explained Lewandowski. 

“It gives nothing to me and the team in the long run. I always had to be available even though I had struggled with injuries. Now the situation has changed. I can sit on the bench sometimes and don’t need to get up. It’ll play an important role in my preparations, especially given the World Cup on the horizon.”