London Defender

The Daily Mirror of the Great Britain

Poland confirm 26-man World Cup squad featuring Barcelona star Robert Lewandowski

Poland manager Czeslaw Michniewicz left out Torino midfielder Karol Linetty from his 26-man squad for the World Cup in Qatar, which he named on Thursday.

The 27-year-old midfielder has earned 42 caps for Poland since making his debut in 2014, but Michniewicz found no room for him in the squad due to fierce competition.

Poland captain Robert Lewandowski is one of four attackers in the squad, along with Arkadiusz Milik, Krzysztof Piatek and Karol Swiderski.

Robert Lewandowski will be hoping to open his account in the World Cup later this month

Robert Lewandowski will be hoping to open his account in the World Cup later this month

Poland manager Czeslaw Michniewicz announced his 26-man squad for the World Cup

Poland manager Czeslaw Michniewicz announced his 26-man squad for the World Cup

Other experienced players missing include Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Jakub Moder, who is out with an injury, and defender Maciej Rybus who was dropped from the Poland squad after joining Russian club Spartak Moscow in June.

There had been speculation that Michniewicz would name four goalkeepers but he opted for three, leaving out FC Copenhagen’s Kamil Grabara and Cercle Brugge’s Radoslaw Majecki.

Michniewicz included 34-year-old veteran Kamil Grosicki, who has earned 86 caps for the national team, and now plays in the Polish club Pogon Szczecin. The midfielder played his first game for Poland back in 2008.

He will be joined by 35-year-old Legia Warsaw defender Artur Jedrzejczyk who was called up despite not playing for Poland since 2019.

Aston Villa full-back Matty Cash is one of the Premier League stars involved in the squad

Aston Villa full-back Matty Cash is one of the Premier League stars involved in the squad

Torino midfielder Karol Linetty was a surprise omission given his long run in the national team

Torino midfielder Karol Linetty was a surprise omission given his long run in the national team

Aston Villa’s defensive duo Jan Bednarek and Matty Cash are included, along with Birmingham City’s Krystian Bielik, who missed the whole of World Cup qualification except their playoff win against Sweden due to a torn knee ligament.

The tournament will be Poland’s ninth World Cup finals appearance after they failed to make it out of their group in Russia four years ago.

Poland, who were drawn in Group C for Qatar, open their World Cup campaign against Mexico on Nov. 22, before matches against Saudi Arabia and Argentina.

Cash's Villa team-mate Jan Bednarek (L) is also in the squad for this month's tournament

Cash’s Villa team-mate Jan Bednarek (L) is also in the squad for this month’s tournament

POLAND 26-MAN WORLD CUP SQUAD LIST 

Goalkeepers: Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus), Bartlomiej Dragowski (Spezia), Lukasz Skorupski (Bologna)

Defenders: Jan Bednarek (Aston Villa), Kamil Glik (Benevento), Robert Gumny (FC Augsburg), Artur Jedrzejczyk (Legia Warsaw), Jakub Kiwior (Spezia), Mateusz Wieteska (Clermont), Bartosz Bereszynski (Sampdoria), Matty Cash (Aston Villa), Nicola Zalewski (AS Roma).

Midfielders: Krystian Bielik (Birmingham City), Przemyslaw Frankowski (Lens), Kamil Grosicki (Pogon Szczecin), Grzegorz Krychowiak (Al-Shabab), Jakub Kaminski (VfL Wolfsburg), Michal Skoras (Lech Poznan), Damian Szymanski (AEK Athens), Sebastian Szymanski (Feyenoord), Piotr Zielinski (Napoli), Szymon Zurkowski (Fiorentina).

Forwards: Robert Lewandowski (FC Barcelona), Arkadiusz Milik (Juventus), Krzysztof Piatek (Salernitana), Karol Swiderski (Charlotte FC)

 

Advertisement