As the Word Cup edges close, we continue our run down of all 32 competing nations in Russia.
Having already kicked off our previews of Group H with Colombia, it’s time to assess Poland.
Aside from a big 4-0 defeat to Denmark, Poland’s qualification for the 2018 World Cup was thoroughly impressive.
They averaged 3.1 goals per game across their nine remaining qualifiers and were rewarded with a pot one seeding.
However, Poland will lament the fact they were handed the most competitive group in Russia this summer.
Between Poland, Colombia, Japan and Senegal, there are no obvious weak points and all four countries will fancy their chances of progressing to the knockout phase.
While Colombia have James Rodriguez and Senegal have Sadio Mane, Poland have Robert Lewandowski and will hope the Bayern Munich striker can inspire them this summer.
Lewandowski is angling for a summer move away from Bayern and will hope to increase his stock with a solid showing in Russia.
The 29-year-old was the top scoring European in qualification for the 2018 World Cup, netting 16 goals at a remarkable average of every 56 minutes of action. His international strike rate is now better than one in two.
Lewandowski will need service in Russia and the one to watch in that respect is talented Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski.
The 24-year-old was on the fringes of their Euro 2016 squad but is expected to start for Poland this time around.
Zielinski has struggled to break into the Napoli first-team and will hope to use the 2018 World Cup as a platform to impress new head coach Carlo Ancelotti.
In fact, only Eder (45) and Marko Rog (41) have made more Serie A appearances as a substitute than Zielinski (40) in the last two seasons and he will be grateful for regular minutes this summer.
Not everything is positive for Poland, however. Head coach Adam Nawalka lost Kamil Glik to a shoulder injury during their preparations and the absence of their star defender will be a real blow.
The 30-year-old would have been the standout name in Poland’s defence but now Nawalka will have to consider his option, with SPAL centre-back Thiago Cionek tipped to get the nod.
Cionek only made 15 appearances for a SPAL side that finished fourth from bottom in Serie A last season, but did finish the campaign as their highest WhoScored rated player (7.16).
SPAL had a better win ratio when Cionek started in the league (26.7%) compared to when he did not feature from the off (17.4%), while also conceding fewer goals per game (1) compared to 1.91 when he was not selected.
If Poland can cope without Glik, then the White and Reds could be a dark horse this summer. Poland failed to qualify for the last two editions of the World Cup and haven’t escaped the group phase since 1986.
A top two finish in Group H will likely result in a round of 16 knockout match against Belgium or England, but with Lewandowski in their ranks they can never be counted out.
