The author of the article is Dawid Szymczak, a journalist for Sport.pl.
The Polish national team has just completed a very ambiguous training camp. There are signs of a plan for the team's development, but many areas still need improvement. While it's pleasing to have gained three points from two away matches in the Nations League, there's concern that in both games - the 3:2 win over Scotland and the 0:1 loss to Croatia - the results were better than the performance. It's disheartening that despite Michał Probierz prioritizing technically skilled players, the gameplay remains sluggish. However, in football, changes rarely happen overnight.
The team has just embarked on a new path after years of stagnation, so it's natural to encounter turbulence. It's expected that the journey will have its bumps, especially when Probierz's plane flies into the Portuguese storm in October. But this is no reason to doubt the direction and turn back. Moving away from conservative, risk-averse play is the right choice. Playing offensive midfielders in central roles makes sense, and seeking defenders who can build attacks is also logical, even though the current benefits are minimal. Time is needed for the coach not only to give the players the tools for better play but also to teach them how to use them. When should Probierz try to change the team's play if not now?
Michał Probierz is Not a Hypocrite. The Croatia Match Wasn't a Repeat of Euro
In the match against Scotland, brave play paid off several times. After good pressing and winning the ball in the opponent's half, Poland scored the 1:0 goal and earned the penalty that led to the winning goal. Additionally, by attempting to play from their own penalty area and passing through Scotland's press, Poland produced their best move of the match, which ended with a dangerous shot from Sebastian Szymański. However, in the game against Croatia, the benefits of fielding many offensive players were minimal.
Some commentators noted that while Probierz talks about offensive, brave football, his team managed only two shots on target, rarely reaching the opponent’s penalty area, and struggled to build plays in the Croatian half. Yes, Poland looked poor and culturally lagged far behind Croatia, but there’s no hypocrisy in Probierz's approach. Let’s not be hypocrites ourselves – this game serves as another reminder of how deeply the Polish team has fallen in recent years and how much time is needed to climb back up.
Probierz’s actions matched his words. His lineup against Croatia was filled almost entirely with players comfortable with the ball at their feet. Incidentally, how perfectly fitting is this expression in our country! Wherever the coach had a choice, he opted for technically superior players. Hence, Piotr Zieliński played as a defensive midfielder instead of Bartosz Slisz, while Sebastian Szymański and Kacper Urbański filled central midfield roles instead of Jakub Piotrowski. Among the center-backs was Sebastian Walukiewicz, known from the start of his career for his ability to pass and control the ball. Playing closest to Robert Lewandowski was Mateusz Bogusz, a creative attacking midfielder, not a traditional striker.
Thus, this is a very different story from the middle of Euro 2024, when Probierz declared offensive play at press conferences but then made selections favoring physically stronger players over technically gifted ones. Urbański, Moder, and Szymański sat on the bench while Piotrowski, Slisz, Buksa, and Piątek ran on the pitch. Poland lost that game 1:3 and was eliminated from the tournament that very evening. Against Croatia, Probierz’s actions were consistent with his pre-match declarations. The problem was that while Probierz gave the team the tools for technical play, they had no idea how to use them. They had players capable of playing football but weren’t actually playing it.
A Squad Full of Creative Players and Little Creativity on the Pitch
In theory, each of the defenders – Walukiewicz, Bednarek, and Dawidowicz – is capable of distributing the ball at a decent level, yet the number of defensive mistakes and losses in their own half, leading to dangerous Croatian chances, was alarming. There were also central midfielders on the field, each of whom can pass the ball well, yet nothing seemed more difficult for Poland than transitioning the ball from defense to attack. Croatia’s press and high defensive line were overwhelmingly effective. Suffice to say, Robert Lewandowski didn’t touch the ball in the first 15 minutes, and after half an hour, he still hadn’t had any involvement in the opposition’s half.
As the game wore on, the Poles grew increasingly nervous, fearful, and unwilling to take responsibility for building attacks. Before halftime, they instinctively began looking for less complicated plays toward the forwards, frustrated by their inability to build from the back. The outcome was poor as Lewandowski and particularly Bogusz were tightly marked by the Croatian defense. Loose balls were mostly collected by Croatian midfielders, who would quickly advance far from their own goal. Poland could only count on flashes from Nicola Zalewski, who persistently (and often successfully) dribbled past opponents to push the action forward, and occasional offensive moves by Piotr Zieliński. Unfortunately, those moments were few, as Zieliński's role as a defensive midfielder seems to limit his real influence on the game, contrary to Probierz’s intention.
Modrić Highlighted the Difference Between "Moments" and Consistent High-Level Play
From a state of "we don’t want to play because we don’t know how' Poland transitioned to "we don’t know how yet, but sometimes we forget that and try to play". Probierz is undeterred and wants to teach his players how to play. A few training sessions won’t be enough. There’s mental and tactical work to be done. Progress is visible, though not impressive. The Poles play more courageously than under Czesław Michniewicz and Fernando Santos, but they still lack the skills to compete with a team as well-organized as Croatia. Probierz admitted in post-match comments and an interview with TVP Sport that the opponents were better and deserved the win, but he also pointed out the positive aspects of his team’s performance.
In the first half, we managed to neutralize Croatia’s strengths. It’s a team with many individual talents, but apart from two dangerous crosses, they didn’t create much. We conceded the goal from a free-kick, and that was just as the game was becoming more balanced
- he noted. He also mentioned Lewandowski's shot that hit the crossbar and how the momentum shifted after Croatia's goal. "We put up a fight, we showed that we can play, and we need to keep a cool head about the good things we did" - he concluded.
Probierz needs time not only to field an offensive lineup but also to teach the players how to use their potential. Almost every offensive player with the best technical skills – Zalewski, Urbański, Szymański, and Zieliński – had moments during the September camp where they shone and showed their capability. But the difference between "moments" and consistent high-level play was demonstrated by 39-year-old Luka Modrić. However, we must remember that the Polish national team is still in the early stages of changing its style of play. And as the match against Croatia painfully showed, this transition will take time.
