Poland coach: 'If there was Messi, Lewandowski would have scored five goals'

Just a draw result is certain to continue, Poland plays somewhat moderately. They owned the ball 27% and didn't hit the target once. Captain Lewandowski himself did not create any significant threats, and only passed 18 times the whole game.

After the match on the 974 field, coach Michniewicz said that the main reason was because Lewandowski received too little support from his teammates. "If Poland had the ball, if we had Messi, Lewandowski would have scored five goals today," he said.

Despite losing 0-2, Poland still won tickets to the 1/8 round, thanks to more than Mexico's sub-index when the two teams had the same four points. Coach Michniewicz admitted he felt bittersweet, saying that Poland's passage through the group stage is an impressive achievement but has a mark of luck. This strategist also warned that his students would face great difficulties when meeting France in the 1/8 round. He said: "This is not the kind of football we want to play. Things could be very bad if goalkeeper Szczesny doesn't save the penalty."

Szczesny collided with Messi when he jumped to punch the ball at the end of the first half, causing Poland to take a penalty. But the Juventus goalkeeper then fell in the right direction, blocking the penalty kick of the Argentine superstar, helping Poland stand firm when entering the break. Everything changed at the beginning of the second half, when Alexis MacAllister and Julian Alvarez consecutively scored two goals to seal the victory for Argentina.

Besides suffering the match against Argentina, Poland also experienced tense moments because of developments in the match at the same time of Mexico and Saudi Arabia. At one point, they were only able to keep second place in the table thanks to receiving two yellow cards less than Mexico. Therefore, even though they are losing, Poland retreats to the defensive home field. When the referee blew the final whistle, they did not know the fate. Only when Saudi Arabia conceded Mexico, shortening the score to 1-2 minutes of injury time, Polish fans could breathe a sigh of relief.

"My heart was pounding when I knew the distance was only a few cards," added coach Michniewicz of Grzegorz Krychowiak's yellow card with 12 minutes remaining. This is the first time Poland has entered the knockout round of the World Cup since 1986.