Coach Deschamps is afraid of Lewandowski
* France - Poland: 10pm today, on MetaSports.
"Lewandowski uses his body very effectively and finishes well," Deschamps said in his pre-match press conference. "Lewandowski may not have many balls, but one situation is enough for him to score. We all understand how dangerous Lewandowski is."
The 54-year-old coach wants the French players not to focus on Lewandowski, but to prevent the ball from going to the striker's position. "With a striker like that, you have to try to limit his influence in the game, because the less Lewandowski receives the better," said Deschamps.
Captain Hugo Lloris also said that France must control Lewandowski to reach the quarterfinals. "Lewandowski is one of the best strikers in the world, an important part of Poland," said the 35-year-old goalkeeper. "Poland is also ready to defend and be persistent, and wait for Lewandowski to make the difference at any time."
Before the 2022 World Cup, Lewandowski ranked first in both scoring statistics (76 goals) and appearances (134 matches) in Polish history. But none of those goals were made at the World Cup. Even in the opening match against Mexico, he missed the penalty kick. It was not until the 136th match that the 34th striker broke the "curse", when he scored a 2-0 victory over Saudi Arabia.
Lewandowski has only hit seven shots in three group games, averaging 2.3 shots per game. This figure was 3.92 shots per game when Lewandowski played for Barca in La Liga. This reflects that the 34-year-old striker did not receive much support when he was recruited.
According to Deschamps, Poland defended well through the three group stage matches and owns a seasoned team, with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, central defender Kamil Glik or Lewandowski. "We have to respect what Poland did. They deserve to be in the round of 16," he said.
The group stage of the 2022 World Cup witnessed many surprises, when Germany and Belgium were eliminated early, while Spain and Argentina respectively lost to Japan and Saudi Arabia with the same score 1-2. France also lost to Tunisia 0-1 in the last round, although they only used the reserve team because they won tickets to go on early.
Therefore, Deschamps asked the French team to focus on the last seconds. He said: "Surprises can always happen. Today, even teams that are judged to be superior, if not ready, can fail. Any match at the World Cup is difficult, when the teams are all prepared. He's good and ready. The players are all playing in the top leagues."
Lewandowski faded when Poland did not have a shot on target in the final round of the group stage, losing 0-2 to Argentina. According to coach Czeslaw Michniewicz, teammates need to better support the captain striker. "It's definitely a problem. We pass difficult in easy situations, and we don't create enough chances for Lewandowski. Strikers like Lewandowski need to be close to the box," he emphasized.
