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World Cup-Date Part 20 - Poland

The Polish national team enters 2006 with a mood of quiet optimism and not a little surprise. Their ease of qualification for the World Cup Finals was a surprise, given that they're ranked only 26th in the world rankings. They saw themselves as very much second fiddle to a strong England side (ranked 9th in the world by FIFA)in the group and, though they finished second to the English, they had assured their qualification a match earlier than their rivals, making their 2-1 defeat in Manchester academic. Here's the table.

Team Played Won Drawn Lost Goal Diff Points
England 10 8 1 1 12 25
Poland* 10 8 0 2 18 24
Austria 10 4 3 3 3 15
N. Ireland 10 2 3 5 -8 9
Wales 10 2 2 6 -5 8
Azerbaijan 10 0 3 7 -20 3

* Poland qualified automatically as one of the two best runners-up.

Austria (75th) caused England problems home and away and remain a technically gifted side, whereas Northern Ireland's (98th) overachievements were well documented. Wales (76th) were disappointing, but proved difficult opponents in what was a tighter group than it looked (check out the goal difference in the middle of the table, which tells its own story). Even the whipping boys, 114th ranked Azerbaijan, could point to some hopeful performances under Brazil legend Carlos Alberto (the captain of their best ever side in 1970, check out his goal in the Final). Besides, would you want to have to play a fixture in Azerbaijan in November?

As an aside, probably the most famous Azerbaijani was Tofik Bakramov, the assistant referee who gifted England the goal that never was in the 1966 World Cup Final (allowing them to undeservedly win the trophy) but I digress...

Forty years later, and it still hasn't crossed the line.

Sorry.

Poland have twice finished third at the World Cup Finals; n 1974 and 1982. The 1974 Finals were, of course held in 2006 host Germany. Grzegorz Lato scored seven goals that year, including the winner over Brazil to secure third place. The 1982 vintage, led by future Juventus midfield star Zbigniew Boniek, repeated the feat, with a win over France and his future Juve teammate Michel Platini. Poland then disappeared from the scene, only making it back to the Finals in 2004, where they disappointed in the first round. They, along with Portugal, were favourites to progress but were ambushed by the USA and South Korea. So, can they make the step up and join the great Polish sides of the past? Nobody is rushing to compare them, but they have a good chance to do well. Coach PAWEL JANAS has put together a good unit from the number of technically adept players at his disposal. Janas played every minute of the 1982 Finals campaign and took no prisoners in defence. His performance earned him a move to Auxerre of France before returning to his old club, Liega Warsaw as coach and took them to a Champions League quarterfinal in 1996. He replaced Boniek in 2002 as national coach and has led Poland on an impressive run. Before making it as Liega coach, he led an unheralded Polish Youth side to the Olympic Final in 1992, where they lost to hosts Spain. Most importantly, he looks like the kind of guy you wouldn't want to let down! Janas has an excellent record for taking unheralded sides deep into major tournaments and I'm surprised that he hasn't been offered a lucrative club management post in the major European leagues.

Poland have three very good goalkeepers. First choice is likely to be ARTUR BORUC (Glasgow Celtic, Scotland). He's only just moved to Scotland but has had some commanding displays, mixed in with the odd shaky spell (his performance in the recent League Cup semifinal was very poor), but he's a tall and intimidating presence. JERZY DUDEK (Liverpool, England) has more experience but has lost his club place to Spaniard Pepe Reina. He's prone to gaffes himself but will always be remembered for his penalty shoot-out heroics in last year's Champions League Final. Third choice (by a fair distance) is WOJCIECH KOWALEWSKI (Spartak Moscow, Russia), but he's an excellent goalkeeper with Champions League experience; bigger than Dudek and more athletic than Boruc.

Part of Poland's recent success has been due to the versatility of their personnel. Janas has been able to shuffle his players about with minimal effect on the system. In defence, the main candidates are almost all able to play in more than one position. Left fullback MICHAL ZEWLAKOW (Anderlecht, Belgium) likes to get forward but doesn't shirk his defensive duties. Like a few players in the squad, he's an excellent free kick taker. Poland have a number of secret weapons in that department and that could give them an advantage over a less than prepared opponent. Zewlakow is struggling to get back into his club side but he should feature as a first choice. In 2000, he appeared for the national side along his twin brother! The right fullback will be TOMASZ KLOS (Wisla Krakow), who can play both fullback slots. He's a tough tackler who likes to get forward and has vast experience; with French side Auxerre, German side Kaiserslauten, as well as his appearance at the 2002 Finals. Another experienced fullback is TOMASZ RZASA (ADO Den Haag, Holland), he can also play in midfield, as he proved during his time at Heerenveen.

Veteran JACEK BAK (Al-Rayyan, Qatar) can point to ten years in France (with Lyon and Lens) as well as his versatility along the entire back line. Bak's age may count against him, he made his international debut back in 1993. A similarly adaptable player, and possibly Bak's central defensive partner, is TOMASZ HAJTO (Southampton, England) who has over sixty caps. He does get booked a lot though, as proven in his spell in Germany (with Nurnberg and Duisburg), where he often topped the indiscipline charts. MARIUSZ JOP (FC Moscow, Russia) is a hard working central defender, though prone to errors. He appeared once in the qualifying campaign and was given the run around by England's Owen and Rooney, so perhaps he will be kept in reserve for the Finals.

Wisla Krakow have become the dominant force in Polish domestic soccer in recent years and they're represented in defence. MARCIN "BASZCZU" BASZCYNSKI is very quick and can play across the defensive line. He's known for his last-gasp tackling and was impressive in his club's Champions League qualifier against Real Madrid. His young teammate DARIUSZ DUDKA is a regular for the Under-21 squad and may make the Finals squad. He may be beaten out by the more experienced MARIUSZ LEWANDOWSKI (Shakhtar Donetsk, Ukraine), a defensive midfielder (and another free kick specialist) with a great engine. His attitude is first class and he has Champions League experience, though his passing can let him down.

Lewandowski's best hope could be his versatility, as AREK RADOMSKI (Austria Memphis Magna Vienna, Austria) can play his midfield role. A real battler who can pass, tackle and score, the former Heerenveen player is fit enough to dominate matches. In the dim and distant past, he starred in the Under-16 side that was European Champions. His clubmate SEBASTIAN MILLA is a major creative force for club and country. His attacking play was first noticed at Groclin, he scored an important UEFA cup goal in 2003 against Manchester City. The left flank is manned by the excellent JACEK KRZYNOWEK (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany), a complete player technically who is also industrious. He's played well at Champions League and World Cup level; he was voted MVP of the 2002 match against the USA, Poland's only win of those Finals. KAMIL KOSOWSKI (Southampton, England - on loan from Kaiserslauten, Germany) is another playmaker who can play either wing. He's an excellent crosser and regular goalscorer who will probably be singled out by opponents for some close attention.

There are two other top-class candidates for midfield, both of whom are adept on the right side, or the centre. RADOSLAV SOBOLEWSKI (Wisla Krakow) is a bit tempremental and physical, making him a disciplinary risk, but he is dynamic; covering his defence and still supporting the attack. MIROSLAV SZYMKOWIAK (Trabzonspor, Turkey) started off on the right side, but Janas prefers him in the centre. Recovering from a broken ankle in record time, he's a good passer with a fantastic long range shot. A bit on the lightweight side, he's not much of a tackler and benefits from having the likes of Sobolewski outside him. Needless to say, he's an expert from free kicks.

Poland scored an impressive twenty-seven goals in ten qualifying matches. That was mainly down to their main strike pairing, who each scored seven. MACIEJ "MAGIC" ZURAWSKI (Glasgow Celtic) is an intelligent runner and deadly finisher who seems to have developed a knack of scoring against Aberdeen. Despite that, I still like him as a player. Zurawski was poor at the 2002 Finals and seems determined to make amends this time round. TOMASZ FRANKOWSKI (Elche, Spain) only plays in the Spanish second division but the ex-Wisla Krakow striker was one of the most prolific strikers in the history of Polish football, a trait he proved by scoring six of his goals in three qualifying matches. A good option off the bench is GREGORZ RASIAK (Tottenham Hotspur, England), a hard working target man. He's excellent in the air and, though struggling to get into the Spurs team, his previous English club, Derby County, benefitted from a burst of Rasiak goals.

In reserve are some intriguing options. EBI SMOLAREK (Borussia Dortmund, Germany) is a youngster that came through the ranks in Holland (with Feyenoord), he was out for a year with an ACL injury, but he could be ready to really arrive on the world stage. Another player who started at Feyenoord is MAREK "SAGAN" SAGANOWSKI (Vitoria Guimares, Portugal) though he, like ANDRZEJ NIEDZIELAN (NEC Nijmegen, Holland) is further down the pecking order. A player I have seen in action (on trial for Aberdeen, against Montrose, no less) is Warsaw forward PIOTR WLODARCZYK. He looks slightly ungainly but is strong and mobile, a clever player who could be useful in the latter stages of a close game.

To quote one of the most idiotic commentator cliches going, "he knows where the goal is".

That's a pretty formidable line up, so what can they do at the Finals? Being in one of the easier groups give Poland a chance of making the second round. Hosts Germany have to be favourites to win the section, with the Poles probably battling Ecuador for second place (I think Costa Rica are there to make up the numbers). The Ecuador match is the first one, so a fast start is essential for both sides. At the moment I see Poland as slight favourites to take the second spot. That would see them play the winners of group B (England, Sweden, Paraguay, Trinidad and Tobago). The Poles would be underdog in a matchup with England or Sweden (the most likely outcomes) but, whilst familiar with England from the qualifying campaign, they match up slightly better with Sweden. A second round exit would be all that the Polish public are reasonably expecting, but they could upset the odds and get further. There's no doubt that Poland will be fired up, particularly for the match with Germany, and they have talent and organisation. It could be a combination that makes for an historic performance. One that can rightly be compared to the 1974 and 1982 sides.

Next time, my spellchecker will be traking another battering from a side that has risen to second in the FIFA rankings on the back of one of the most talented group of players seen in the last twenty years. They have a mean defence, prolific attackers and a midfield of invention with a player voted Europe's best in 2003, Pavel Nedved.

NEXT WEEK - THE CZECH REPUBLIC

Steve Beagrie is the resident Football (that's soccer for the yanks) expert here at SFM. Check out his website at SteveBeagrie.com.


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