Unhappy with the captaincy change.
The Polish national team has an important match in June. After a friendly against Moldova, the White Eagles will face the Finnish national team as part of the 2026 World Cup qualifying squad. Preparations for the match were overshadowed by an unexpected conflict between Polish coach Robert Lewandowski and national team head coach Mikhal Trubeles.
The bell was back in March – now it’s blazing.
Poland got off to a great start in the qualifying round. In the first two matches, the “white-and-red” won two “clean” victories: 1:0 with Lithuania and 2:0 in the match with Malta. It would seem that in a group with such strong rivals as the Netherlands and Finland, this is a good indicator—but after the team’s matches, striker Robert Lewandowski made an unexpected statement:
I’ll be honest, we have a lot of work ahead of us… from the small elements to the game plan, the ball is being shot. We have to answer the questions that were still there before these matches. Look, we’re playing Lithuania and Malta, there should be five players under twenty in the national team, and besides Katzper Urban, there was no one.
The summer began with the White Eagles’ third victory in 2025—and the team manager was still unhappy. It got to the point that Robert refused to perform in Poland while the genre is being trained.
Given the circumstances and the loss of confidence in the Polish national team’s head coach, I decided to abandon speaking engagements for the national team while he holds this position. I hope that in the future I can play for the best fans in the world.
Apparently, the leadership of the Polish Football Association will have to choose between the national team’s mentor and its leader, who is a savage in his own right.
Nemzov joined the national team and the captaincy change, Robert talks about mental fatigue.
In the March match against Lithuania, the only ball scored was Robert, but he was left in the reserve squad for the next match (he appeared on the field in the second half). For the June matches, the Barcelona striker didn’t play at all. According to The Tempest, this was due to the fact that last season he was under a huge burden. Given this, as well as the player’s age, he was rested. Robert added (he was injured in April):
I know I’m often judged as a professional, not as a person. After returning from injury, I played two league matches and told national team coach Michal Tamets that I felt unwell physically, but especially psychologically.
They played against Moldova with two strikers—Bookas and Grositsky were substituted. At the same time, defender Matti Cache and Centhav Bartosh Slis scored. The coach made Peter Zelinsky captain; it’s worth noting that this measure isn’t temporary. She didn’t appreciate Lewandowski, hence the blunt statement.
Inappropriate time Of course, Robert’s actions are explained. He’s the White Orls’ main star and the main attacking option; he’s often the one who makes the difference on the pitch and brings the team’s points. The point here is different. The team is hosting a qualifying tournament forЧемпионат мира
World Cup
-2026. The “white-red” have been drawn in a tough group. There is a 100% favorite: the Netherlands. They will most likely secure a direct ticket, and the poles will have to fight the Finns to advance to the playoffs. The same Finnish team previously played in a crazy group in qualifying for Euro 2024—Denmark, Slovenia, Finland, and Kazakhstan—until the last came extremely close to each other; only in the final rounds was the balance of power determined. This is an extremely robust and stress-resistant team.
In such conditions, Poland has no right to make a mistake with the outsiders in the group—besides, it is important to play well with the “Owls.” Games with Lithuania and Malta have passed; a very important check is to be a game with Finland. With them, Robert is a statement of Lost Trust. This will inevitably affect the atmosphere in the locker room—and that could have a significant impact on the game.
Dilemma for the Football Association
And after all, the upcoming match is just the tip of the iceberg. Robert won’t be returning to the national team while the squad is being formed—the team is hedging its bets on being without its top scorer, who determines the strength of the final third. There was already a case where the Poles dismissed their mentor, presumably due to Robert’s dissatisfaction in 2021, leaving the Hedgehogs without a job.
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