World Cup Fantasy 2022 team previews: Poland

Our World Cup Fantasy team previews continue with a look at Poland, who join Argentina, Mexico and Saudi Arabia in Group C.

In these country-by-country guides, we’ll be looking at the best players from each nation, taking a stab at predicted line-ups, reviewing the road to Qatar and more.

To do this, we’ll be calling on the help of correspondents from each nation.

Here, Fantasy Football Scout users Pete (FPLMFDOOM_Pete/@FplMfdoom), Matthew Davies (Drmattyd) and Michał Antosiewicz (Lionheart95/@mantosiewicz95) help us profile Czeslaw Michniewicz’s side.

All prices given are from the official FIFA World Cup Fantasy game.

THE ROAD TO QUALIFICATION

7-1 and 5-0 wins over San Marino helped Poland stave off the threats of Albania and Hungary to secure second place. To be seeded in the play-offs, all they had to do was draw their final game.

At this point, then-coach Paulo Sousa chose to rest many of his biggest, most important players and they subsequently lost it. It would have meant a tough semi-final against Russia, until their opponents were suspended as a result of the Ukraine invasion.

Under new coach Czeslaw Michniewicz, the lucky Poles were given a walkover to the final, where Sweden were beaten 2-0.

Path B play-off Final: Poland 2-0 Sweden

• Most starts: Wojciech Szczesny (10), Robert Lewandowski (9), Jakub Moder (8)
• Most goals: Robert Lewandowski (9), Karol Swiderski (5), Adam Buksa (5)
• Most assists: Robert Lewandowski (4)
• Clean sheets: 4 from 11

RECORD SINCE QUALIFYING

Since then, Poland finished third in their Nations League A4 group but were on the wrong side of a 6-1 defeat versus Belgium.

However, they did beat Wales home and away, with Karol Swiderski ($5.5m) on the scoresheet in both matches.

MOST RECENT INTERNATIONAL LINE-UPS

22/09/2022 – Poland 0-2 Netherlands

(3-4-2-1) Szczesny; Bednarek, Kiwior, Glik; Frankowski, Krychowiak, Linetty, Zalewski; Szymanski, Zielinski; Lewandowski

25/09/2022 – Wales 0-1 Poland (Swiderski)

(3-5-2) Szczesny; Bednarek, Kiwior, Glik; Bereszynski, Krychowiak, Zurkowski, Zielinski, Zalewski; Lewandowski, Swiderski

HOW FAR WILL THEY GET?

“Poland will have a tough although not impossible task getting out of their group. Argentina are clear favourites and if Poland are to advance, their first game versus Mexico offers their best chance of getting through to the final 16. It looks like most bookies are giving Poland and Mexico even odds to get out of the group.” – FPLMFDOOM_Pete

“Group stage exit (third). Poland face a challenging draw featuring Argentina, Mexico and Saudi Arabia. Argentina are likely to win the group, leaving Mexico and Poland to duel for second place. Mexico, 12th on the Fifa rankings (one place behind Germany), will feel they have the edge over a Poland side ranked 26th. However, Lewandowski’s final World Cup may give them the motivation they need in the veteran striker’s swansong.

“Even if they do make it out of the group, they are unlikely to pose much of a challenge to likely Group D winners Denmark in the last 16.” – Matthew Davies

“Our head coach Czesław Michniewicz told the journalists on the occasion of the announcement of the preliminary squad that he doesn’t want to go back to the country before Saint Nicholas Day (December 6). It will be a difficult task to do.

“I expect Poland to fight for second place in the group and the first match against Mexico will be the key one. However, recently we have had a tradition of dropping out in the group stage and our 21st-century major tournament appearances have mostly been a disappointment.

“Coach Michniewicz usually copes well with adapting tactics to the opponent. To sum up, Poland can advance to the last 16 but this is the maximum of its possibilities.” – Michał Antosiewicz

STRENGTHS

“The obvious answer here is Robert Lewandowski. Even though “Lewy” often has to play a different role for Poland (more deeper), his goal-scoring exploits at both club and international level speak for themselves. Lewandowski scored eight goals in 10 qualifiers as Poland finished second in England’s group. “Talisman theory” is in full effect here as Poland’s attacks are geared towards Lewandowski. That said, he doesn’t have the supporting cast that he has had at Barca or Bayern so he is often double-teamed.” – FPLMFDOOM_Pete

“Our biggest advantage is called Robert Lewandowski. He’s our greatest player – probably of all time – but it’s a moot point. In 134 appearances for the national team, Lewandowski has scored 76 goals; that’s a number that must make an impression, even if he scored a lot of them against weaker teams. 

“He plays a different role at international level than he did for Bayern, a bit closer to what we see in Barcelona. Lewandowski goes deeper into the centre of the field, and helps in creating goal situations. 

“The strengths of the Polish team also include: great goalkeeper depth, quite good wing-backs (e.g. Zalewski and Cash), the creative genius of Piotr Zielinski and Czesław Michniewicz’s tactical wisdom.” – Michał Antosiewicz

WEAKNESSES

“Poland’s backline is a work in progress and doesn’t instill much confidence in fans of the Bialo Czerwoni. Jan Bednarek lost his spot at Southampton and has played 91 mins at Aston Villa since his loan move, while Kamil Glik is on the wrong side of 34 and has been out of form for Serie B side Benevento.” – FPLMFDOOM_Pete

“Despite their talismanic striker, Poland have struggled for consistency up top. In their Nations League group, Poland only mustered 50 shots across their six games, 30 of which were on target. Part of the challenge is their tendency to occasionally sit back and defend deep: their average possession in the Nations League was 42%.” – Matthew Davies

“The lack of quality players. Watching the matches of the Polish national team, you can see how sometimes Zieliński and Lewandowski get tired when they do not have technically and tactically talented players around them. 

“Another problem is the injuries of important players. In early April, Brighton’s Jakub Moder ruptured his ACL. We also lost a solid substitute, Jacek Góralski, known for his aggressive style of play. The health condition of Krystian Bielik is also a subject of many concerns. A talented Birmingham City midfielder who can play in the centre of defence and midfield, he has been plagued by injuries for years.

“Fans in Poland are also worried about the defensive line. Kamil Glik does not age like wine, while Jan Bednarek is only a substitute in Aston Villa – and this is the kind of player who needs many minutes on the pitch. 

“Finally, it is also worth paying attention to Szczęsny. He has matches where he is brilliant and saves every shot, but also he’s not the perfect goalkeeper, he lacks stability of form.” – Michał Antosiewicz

THE KEY FANTASY TARGETS

Robert Lewandowski ($10.0m) is Poland’s match-winner and talisman. In La Liga, he is the division’s top-scorer, netting 13 goals in 14 matches for Barcelona, so arrives at the tournament in good form.

The penalty-taking forward is arguably the standout captain pick on the second day (November 26) of Matchday 2, when Poland meet Saudi Arabia, who struggle to prevent chances against higher-quality opposition.

“Robert Lewandowski will be a prized possession for those considering a punt on the Poles. At club level, a move from Bayern Munich to Barcelona has seen him continue his rich scoring vein with 13 goals in as many games. Named La Liga’s October player of the month, he comes into the World Cup in fine form. Although Lewandowski is Poland’s all-time leading goalscorer, remarkably he has never scored in a World Cup, having blanked in 2018 and Poland’s failure to qualify in previous campaigns. However many will be willing to bet that he will put that stat to bed this time around, particularly against Saudi Arabia – one of the tournament’s lowest-ranked sides (51).” – Matthew Davies

Only England (39), Germany (36) and Netherlands (33) scored more than Poland (30) among European teams in qualification and there is plenty of firepower in addition to Lewandowski, including set-piece taking Piotr Zieleinski ($6.5m), Arkadiusz Milik ($7.5m) and Krzysztof Piatek ($5.5m).

Zielinski has plenty of talent and has thrived for Napoli this season. Given that Poland face Mexico and Saudi Arabia first, he could be a decent pick for those planning a Matchday 3 Wildcard.

“Playing for Serie A high-fliers Napoli, Zielinski has caught the eye for his attacking exploits, directly involved in seven goals in nine matches across all competitions this season. On free-kicks, he offers goalscoring threat and strong assist potential with Lewandowski up top. For these reasons, Zielinski could offer good value for money and be a strong differential for managers.” – Matthew Davies

However, it’s worth noting that Poland have adopted a more reactive, counter-attacking approach under new manager Czeslaw Michniewicz, often having considerably less possession and a lower shot output than their opponents.

Aston Villa’s Matty Cash ($4.0m) qualifies for Poland through his mother and should slot in at right back in a back four or as a wing-back in a three. They scored the most goals from crosses of any European side in qualifying, so Cash isn’t a bad budget pick to consider for the first two rounds. However, they have kept just two clean sheets in eight under Michniewicz, so this isn’t a top-tier defence.

“Matty Cash also offers points potential on both ends of the pitch. Having only qualified for the Polish squad last year after he was granted Polish citizenship, Cash has only played seven games for Poland to date and could therefore fly under the radar as a differential. Managers would have been reminded of his attacking potential even against better teams, scoring a screamer against the Netherlands in the Nations League earlier this year.” – Matthew Davies

Elsewhere, Wojciech Szczesny ($5.5m) and Kamil Glik ($4.0m) are Poland’s other experienced players at the back, although neither of them will have too many suitors.

In fact, as one of our correspondents says, it’s maybe Lewandowski or nothing.

“Lewandowski is the clear-cut favourite here. A talisman, on penalties, on most free-kicks; he is a world-class player.

“Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski has a respectable 0.65 xGI per 90 minutes for the Serie A leaders this season and is always in the mix for Poland (eight goals and 10 assists in 72 appearances). For FPL/Arsenal fans, his play style is very similar to that of Martin Ødegaard.

“At $4.0m, Aston Villa’s Matty Cash offers a nicely priced punt. If he plays right wing-back in a 3-5-2 formation, he’ll be expected to crash down that right wing and be involved in Poland’s counters. However, he is a minutes risk given that he hasn’t played for the national team since June due to his injury issues. 

“Truthfully, however, Lewandowski would be the only Polish player I would recommend for World Cup Fantasy.” – FPLMFDOOM_Pete

PREDICTED LINE-UP

(3-4-2-1): Szczesny; Bednarek, Glik, Kiwior; Cash (Frankowski), Bielik, Krychowiak, Zalewski; Zielinski, Szymanski (Świderski); Lewandowski

“Tough to say 100% as Poland coach Czeslaw Michniewicz has toyed around with both a 3-5-2/3-4-2-1 wing-back formation as well as a 4-2-3-1.

“However, with our centre-backs in quite poor form, I am expecting a 3-5-2 in our first game v Mexico. Zalewski is a shoo-in at left wing-back; right wing-back would most likely be between Cash and Frankowski, although Bereszynski could feature too. It’s tough to say right now – the Chile game on Nov 16 will give us a lot of answers!

“Karol Swiderski and Arkadiusz Milik would likely be the first players off the bench if we’re trailing.” – FPLMFDOOM_Pete

“Poland have experimented with several formations in qualifying and the Nations League and have tended towards a back four. However, the attacking potential of Cash gives them the option of a back three with wing-backs. For their opening game, they are likely to employ a similar squad to the team that recently defeated Wales in the Nations League.” – Matthew Davies