Poland will be at the World Cup for the first time since 2006, as Robert Lewandowski gets his first state of the top international tournament the sport has to offer. With the star striker up top, this team is set in the final third in addition to other pieces, but at the back and in goal this team must exceed expectations to make a run.
Best Player
Robert Lewandowski, and it’s not even close. The 29-year-old striker is on pace to be the national team’s all-time caps leader and is already the top scorer. He’s one of the best pure strikers in the world and should have a fine tournament. But there is a lot of pressure on him to be the guy in attack. He can, by himself, change the course of a game with one magical moment.
Player to watch
Grzegorz Krychowiak. The defensive midfielder was a budding star at Sevilla under Unai Emery, but he found minutes hard to come by after following Emery to PSG, resulting in a loan move to West Brom. Let’s just say, there’s probably a shortage of confidence there. With his club future up in the air, he’ll want to put together a good tournament and secure a move in the summer. He’s really talented and when he is at his best, he can be a top defensive midfielder.
Outlook
Poland should be the favorite as a Pot 1 team in the draw, but the truth is Colombia is a strong team on paper, and Senegal and Japan aren’t easy to face either. Poland has enough, especially in attack, to move on, but it feels like there’s an equal chance they crash out in the group stage. This squad has some serious talent, but there are too many questions marks to make me feel confident this team can get past the round of 16. Colombia should be the class of the group, with Poland fighting for second place