Azerbaijan, Armenia Previews

It's time again for another pair of qualifiers, with each one becomming more important than the last.

Azerbaijan Preview

No introduction needed for Azerbaijan, as this will be the 4th time Poland will be playing them in the past 15 months including results of 8:0, 3:0, and 5:0 - all in Poland's favour. Azerbaijan has been kind to us, they even beat Finland in their last qualifier to help give us a bit more breathing room at the top of the group.

Although they may not strike you as a good team, they are a tough team at home. In their last 5 matches at home they have amassed a record of 1-4-0. In fact, the last time they lost at home was the last time they played Poland there - June of 2005. Aside from the match against Poland, the last time Azerbaijan allowed 2 goals or more was back in September of 2003 against Finland in a 2:1 defeat. Included in their last 5 home matches are draws with Turkey, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Austria.

What Poland will need to do to succeed is to smother the Azeri defense and force them to make mistakes. In this match the focus must be on offense and scoring at least a couple. In its past 10 matches, Azerbaijan has scored only 4 goals, being shut out 6 times. But Azerbaijan cannot be expected to not score. At home, they have scored 3 times in their past 5. The last time Azerbaijan scored more than one goal was in 2004 against Latvia when they fought to a 2:2 draw. Poland should budget themselves for one goal against though, as scoring just one might be too few for Poland to ensure a desired result, and Azerbaijan have proven capable of being able to score on a semi-consistent basis (not against Poland though!).

Key for this match: Keeping up a relentless attack. A match like this almost encourages a 4-3-3, or at the least - some offensive midfielders to keep the pressure on. One goal in this match might not be enough.

My prediction: 3:0 Poland

Armenia Preview

Armenia and Poland are not as well acquainted as Poland are with the Azeri. In their last meeting, Poland at home won by a narrow 1:0 margin. Prior to that, the last time the two met was during the 2002 World Cup qualifiers where Poland won the first match 4:0 at home, but could only come out of Armenia with a draw (1:1).

Armenia is going to be another tough team to deal with on their turf, but tougher than the Azeri? Perhaps not. In Armenia's last 5 home matches, they have sported a record of 1-1-3. During this span they have allowed 5 goals while scoring 3. Their results have not been as impressive, achieving points only against Andorra (3) and Finland (1) while losing to Belgium, Holland, and Macedonia.

In their most immediate results, Armenia has achieved only a 1-3-6 record in their last 10 matches. The last time the Armenians achieved a win was just under 2 years ago, in September of 2005 against Andorra - also the last time they have scored more than 1 goal in a match. They have failed to score a goal in 8 of their last 10 matches. That doesn't mean that they can't steal points against a formidable opponent, however. In 2006 WCQ they were able to battle Romania to a 1:1 draw, and they have been able to do the same against Poland, however that is even further back in history.

Keys for this match: Similar to Azerbaijan, keeping a persistent attack going. Perhaps even a stronger one than against the Azeri, as the Armenians are more prone to playing for a draw and might frustrate the Polish attack if the match goes deadlocked into half-time or later while the Armenians keep aimlessly lobbing balls onto the Polish side of the pitch.

Prediction: 2:0 Poland

Summary

Offensively, Azerbaijan is more of a threat, but defensively, Armenia's defense might be more difficult to penetrate. Given Poland hasn't had much trouble keeping Azerbaijan off the scoreboard in recent matches, I'd expect the Armenian match to be tighter.

The importance in both games will be striking early for Poland, as if they get the first one, they will have eased the pressure and will be able to go at a better pace. However if they go late without a goal they may rush chances and waste quality opportunities. The Azeris have more holes in their game and Poland will likely have the opportunities to expose them, however against Armenia that will be harder to do since they are less aggressive, and thus, even more important to score early against them to ensure a victory.

Although I've called for 6 points out of these matches, it wouldn't be surprising if Poland came away with 4 as well, especially if they play the way they did against these two teams in Poland. However, I'm expecting (and hoping) that they come out with a stronger effort and come away with full points.

Orange Ekstraklasa Week 30

ZAGLEBIE LUBIN ARE CHAMPIONS!!! This is the clubs second championship with the first one coming in 1991. They defeated last years champions Legia Warsawa with a score of 2-1 which gave them the first place spot because GKS Belchatow also beat relegated Pogon Sczeczin 2-0but it was not enough as two losses in the past 3 games made them drop out of the top spot. Here are the final scores and the final league table:

Team
1. Zaglebie Lubin -62
2. GKS Belchatow -61
3. Legia Warszawa -52
4. Cracovia Krakow -49
5. Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wlkp.- 48
6. Lech Poznan -47
7. Korona Kielce -47
8. Wisła Kraków -46
9. LKS Lodz -41
10. Odra Wodzisław Slaski -40
11. Widzew Lodz -28
12. Gornik Zabrze -25
13. Wisla Plock -23
14. Pogon Szceczin -16
15. Arka Gdynia -40
16. Gornik Leczna -25

Gornik Leczna and Arka Gdynia were relegated because of their involvement in corruption.

UEFA Champions League Qualifiers
UEFA Cup Qualifiers
Intertoto Cup
Relegated

Górnik Zabrze - Korona Kielce 0:0
Lech Poznañ - Odra Wodzislaw Slaski 0:0
Legia Warszawa - Zaglêbie Lubin 1:2
Widzew Lódz - Cracovia Kraków 1:3
Górnik Lêczna - Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wlkp. 0:3
Pogoñ Szczecin - GKS Belchatów 0:2
Wisla Kraków - LKS Lódz 0:0
Wisla Plock - Arka Gdynia 1:0

Orange Ekstraklasa Week 29

Action, action and more action in this second last week of the Ekstraklasa season!The big surprise was GKS Belchatow losing their two point lead after a dramatic 2-1 loss to spoilers Wisla Krakow.Wisla had taken a 2-0 lead in the first half with Blehatow getting an late goal but it was not enough and the title looks still pretty open but you never know. Now with Belchatow out of the way Zaglebie Lubin took the lead with a scoring affair against Widzew Lodz that ended 4-2 in favour of Zaglebie. Last years champions Legia Warszawa confirmed themselves a Intertoto Cup spot with a 2-1 over spring surprise package Odra Wodzislaw Slaski.

Another team that was fighting for a championship spot a few weeks ago is Korona Kielce who lost 2-1 to LKS Lodz which determined Kielce's dismal few weeks. Bottom dwellers Goenik Zabrze have saved themselves for yet another season with a 2-0 win over now relegated Wisla Plock, another team who is also going down with Wisla Plock is Pogon Szczecin who lost once again to in form Groclin 3-1. The last two teams that are being relegated for their involvement in the corruption scam are Arka Gdynia who surprisingly beat Lech Poznan 3-1 at home showing that they should be back next year in Ekstraklasa. But the other team that was in volved in corruption and wont be coming back next year is Gornik Leczna Who got hammered 5-0 by Cracovia with Tomasz Moskala getting a hat-trick.

As an Interesting season winds down in the Orange Ekstraklasa we know who is going down but more importantly we still dont have a champion but no need to worry on May 26 2007 at 8 pm we will have one, is it going to be GKS Belchatow or Zaglebie Lubin we just have to wait and see.

News From Around

Sosin leaves Apollon

Lukasz Sosin is staying in Cyprus, but with a new club - Anorthosis with whom he has signed a three-year contract. He has been in Cyprus since 2002 with Apollon Limassol and has done very well since coming over. However, this move has angered many Apollon fans who felt he betrayed them by breaking his word and choosing an opposing club. For the rest of us who do not live in Cyprus or follow the league, this appears to be non consequential, but judging from the responses it will be interesting to say the least when Sosin returns to Limassol as the enemy.

Kuszczak to be loaned out to Sunderland

Tomasz Kuszczak's tenure at Manchester United is not going quite as planned. The club plans to loan him out to Sunderland. Apparently van der Sar has fallen out of favour in Man U and it will likely make the returning Ben Foster (was on loan at Watford) the new first choice at Man U. This would put Kuszczak at number three in the pecking order. Whether or not he ends up at Sunderland, it is clear that Kuszczak will likely not be contesting for the number one job for at least another year.

Injuries

Glowacki and Golanski are injured and will not play in the upcoming Euro Qualifiers. How much they will be missed is debatable. Glowacki was a stretch to play at all, Golanski probably would have. But Poland really doesn't need its top players to overcome Azerbaijan and Armenia. If it really ends up being the difference, well then they probably won't deserve to come away with full points in the first place.

Boruc Receives Award

Boruc received the Fair Play award from the Polish Olympic Committee for defending a woman who was attacked at a park in Glasgow during April. Beenhakker is seen accepting the award on his behalf.

Player Updates

Forwards

Frankowski ::: CD Tenerife ::: N/A
Jeleń ::: AJ Auxerre ::: (10)
Matusiak ::: Palermo ::: DNP (Injured)
Ślusarski ::: UD Leiria ::: N/A
Smolarek ::: Borussia Dortmund ::: (9)
Wichniarek ::: Arminia Bielefeld ::: 20'
Zurawski ::: Celtic Glasgow ::: DNP (Injured?)

Midfielders

Gorawski ::: FK Moskva ::: DNP
Grzelak ::: Boavista Porto ::: (5)
Kaźmierczak ::: Boavista FC ::: 90'
Kosowski ::: Chievo Verona ::: DNP
Krzynówek ::: VfL Wolfsburg ::: 90'
Kukiełka ::: Energie Cottbus ::: 90'
Lewandowski ::: Szakhtar Donetsk ::: 90'
Mila ::: Vålerenga ::: N/A
Radomski ::: Austria Wien ::: DNP (Injured?)

Defenders

Gancarczyk ::: Metalist Kharkow ::: N/A
Jop ::: FK Moskva ::: 90'
Rząsa ::: SV Ried ::: DNP
Wasilewski ::: Anderlecht ::: 66'
Żuraw ::: Hannover 96 ::: DNP

Goalkeepers

Boruc ::: Celtic Glasgow ::: DNP
Kowalewski ::: Spartak Moscow ::: DNP

Beenhakker Doing Double Duty

Beenhakker is the coach of Poland's National Team. But recently, he was also the coach for Dutch club Feyenoord. A little over a week ago Beenhakker overtook the role that he has held before in hopes of helping the club progress in the UEFA Cup tournament....while still being coach of Poland. The vacancy in Feyenoord occurred when coach Erwin Koeman resigned from his duties, citing a lack of motivation. Unfortunately Beenhakker was not able to work his magic, as Feyenoord failed to get past Groningen in the semi finals, losing 3-2 on aggregate.

The question becomes - is this an issue? Should it be? On the one hand you have Beenhakker wanting for roughly 10 days to coach a team with whom he has so much history that was in need of a coach, without even taking into account the team plays in Beenhakker's birthplace - Rotterdam. On the other hand you have a coach of one team taking up the duties of another - with a couple of Euro Qualifiers coming up in a couple weeks.

Objectively, it does not appear to be a big deal, but given the press this has received recently you'd have to wonder why it does appear to be? After all, although Poland has two Euro Qualifiers upcoming, it would still leave Beenhakker plenty of time to prepare the troops, and with all due respect to Azerbaijan and Armenia - they are not the most difficult of opponents either. Given the success Beenhakker has been enjoying in Poland, would it not be wise to assume he knows what he is doing and let him take a 10 day vacation from the Polish NT to help his hometown club try and progress in the UEFA Cup?

It is a club and a city that he has both a history with and a soft spot for in his heart. It does not appear appropriate to question his decision out of respect for what he has done for our National Team and the commitment he has made. Instead he should have received greater support, and perhaps hope that he could have enjoyed some success with the club, and come back to Poland more motivated and energized than ever.

Surely there was no conflict of interest. As not only was it for a short period of time, but it was also not out of any financial gain that he was doing this either. Seems to be nothing more than a talented coach who wanted to see his hometown club advance with a rare opportunity to help.

Beenhakker has done much to deserve our trust and gratitude, and should not be interrogated. After all, we can see what he can do. It is best to keep him happy. Give him whatever he wants, it'll still be a small price to pay if that'll mean our first birth in the Euro Championships.

Player Updates

Forwards

Frankowski ::: CD Tenerife ::: N/A
Jeleń ::: AJ Auxerre ::: N/A
Matusiak ::: Palermo ::: (1)
Olisadebe ::: Skoda Xanthi ::: DNP
Rasiak ::: Southampton ::: 3'
Saganowski ::: Southampton ::: 87'
Ślusarski ::: UD Leiria ::: N/A
Smolarek ::: Borussia Dortmund ::: (8)
Wichniarek ::: Arminia Bielefeld ::: (10)
Ma. Żewłakow ::: KAA Gent ::: (1)
Zurawski ::: Celtic Glasgow ::: DNP (Injured)

Midfielders

Gorawski ::: FK Moskva ::: DNP
Grzelak ::: Boavista Porto ::: 18'
Kaźmierczak ::: Boavista Porto ::: 90'
Kosowski ::: Chievo Verona ::: DNP
Krzynówek ::: VfL Wolfsburg ::: 90'
Kukiełka ::: Energie Cottbus ::: 90'
Lewandowski ::: Szakhtar Donetsk ::: 90'
Mila ::: Vålerenga ::: N/A
Radomski ::: Austria Wien ::: DNP (Injured)

Defenders

Gancarczyk ::: Metalist Kharkow ::: N/A
Jop ::: FK Moskva ::: 90'
Rząsa ::: SV Ried ::: 90'
Wasilewski ::: Anderlecht ::: 90'
Mi. Żewłakow ::: Olympiakos CFP ::: DNP
Żuraw ::: Hannover 96 ::: DNP

Goalkeepers

Białkowski ::: Southampton ::: 90'
Boruc ::: Celtic Glasgow ::: 90'
Dudek ::: Liverpool ::: DNP (Injured)
Kowalewski ::: Spartak Moscow ::: DNP
Kuszczak ::: Manchester United ::: DNP

Fabianski to Arsenal Rumours

Over the past week rumours (largely from the Polish media) have circulated that Legia Warszawa goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski is linked to a move with Arsenal. The latest rumours suggest that a deal is all but done except for a medical.

As mentioned, it has been a week and still no real confirmation either way. However, there have been reports from the English media that Fabianski is indeed close to a deal, so there is likely some truth to the story after all. Perhaps it could also simply be a ploy to drive down the price of other keepers interested in joining Arsenal - including Fabianski's Polish teammate Artur Boruc, who is older, was a star at the recent WC, and more capable to jump into play right away. Or Arsenal could truly be interested in a younger, less expensive alternative.

However, if indeed true, it would (at least temporarily) give Poland three of its top goalkeepers spots in the English Premier League - Dudek, Kuszczak, and Fabianski. The only problem is all of those spots would be currently on the bench. However, Dudek is likely on his way out (whether just Liverpool or the Premiership remains to be seen), Kuszczak is likely going to contend for the first choice at Manchester United when Van Der Saar's days are done, and the same plan is going to be set for Fabianski when Lehmann departs. And if Boruc doesn't find his way to Arsenal, chances are that he could still find his way into the Premiership. The latest rumours involve a move to Aston Villa.

The Premiership is certainly taking notice of some excellent Polish goalkeepers. If only that could also be true of other positions.

Orange Ekstraklasa Week 25

GKS Belhatow and Zaglebie Lubin are still neck and neck for the title race as they beat both of their opponents respectively.

GKS Belchatow beat strugglers Gornik Zabrze 3-1 with winter import Costly Molina scoring two of the goals and bringing up his season tally to 4 goals.

To keep up with GKS, Zaglebie Lubin had to win over title challengers Korona Kielce in which they did 2-0 with 21 year old midfielder Pietron scoring both of the goals. With this loss Zaglebie has now opened up a 9 point lead over Korona in the tittle race.

Last year's champions Legia Warsawa grabed the opportunity to move up into third place with not to convincing 3-1 win over bottom layers Pogon Sczecin who now look pretty bad to escape the baraze spot. But this score dos not tell the story of the game, Legia left it late to confirm their win with an own goal in the 90th minute. The big surprise result was Odra Wodzislaw's win over Wisla Krakow 2-1 in a very physical match with plenty of yellow cards and two reds for Wisla. Wisla started the game of great with a goal in the 5th minute by National Team player Dariusz Dudka but soon fell behind in the second half. Another surprise you could say was the 2-2 result of Cracovia and bottom dwellers Wisla Plock.

In one match in which there was no surprise was the 2-1 win of newly crowned Puchar Polski champions Groclin against Arka Gdynia in a mediocre played games with a nice goal being scored by Jarolaw Lato. One of the more exciting games of this week was Lech Poznan's 2-1 win over LKS Lodz with Piotr Reiss getting his 99th goal in his career on a nice strike from a cross. Now finally Widzew Lodz has returned to a winning streak with a nice 3-0 win over corruptionists Gornik Leczna.

So now we have only 4 more weeks left in the season and with GKS Belchatow and Zaglebie Lubin making a nine point gap between themselves and the third place Legia and a 12 point lead over Wisla Krakow which makes these two top teams pretty much untouchable but who knows anything can happen.......

Robert

Player Updates

Forwards
Frankowski - DNP
Jeleń - (8)
Matusiak - DNP
Rasiak - Sub (85'+)
Saganowski - DNP (Injured?)
Ślusarski - (6)
Smolarek - (7)
Wichniarek - (9)
Zurawski - DNP (Injured)

Midfielders
Gorawski - Sub (52'+)
Grzelak - 61'
Kaźmierczak - DNP
Kosowski - DNP
Krzynówek - 65'
Kukiełka - 90'
Lewandowski - 90'
Mila - DNP
Radomski - DNP (Injured)

Defenders
Gancarczyk - 90'
Jop - DNP
Rząsa - 90'
Wasilewski - 90'
Żuraw - Sub (86'+)

Goalkeepers
Białkowski - 90'
Boruc - 90'
Dudek - DNP (Injured)'
Kowalewski - DNP
Kuszczak - DNP

Dudek Finally Set to Leave Liverpool

About two years too late, but Dudek looks to be set to leave Liverpool…finally.

He joined Liverpool in 2001 and has been (and still is) Poland's most recognizable player in England. Dudek's had quite an interesting stay with Liverpool to say the least. He's been the first choice, but at time's he's had to battle for the role with others - namely the likes of Pepe Reina, Scott Carson, and Chris Kirkland. It didn't help having any blunder he made televised and ridiculed incessantly. It also didn't help that he kept committing them. The peak of his tenure came when he won the Champion's League finals in 2005, largely due to spectacular play on his end. How did Liverpool reward him? Having him sit on the bench and watch Reina take over his job.

Not only has Dudek found trouble getting into Premiership matches since Reina's arrival, he's also had no opportunity to go elsewhere, which in the end...cost him a chance to represent his country at the 2006 World Cup. Had Dudek been playing regularly he may have had the opportunity to go to Germany. Dudek did ask to leave, but with Benitez calling for ridiculous amounts (as much as 5 million Euros for an inactive keeper!), it's no surprise Dudek has been trapped at Liverpool under contract.

As a result, Dudek's role on the National Team also disintegrated. He was still given opportunities, but with keepers like Boruc and Kuszczak on the rise, and Dudek not getting much in playing time, he started to find call ups to the National Team less frequent. Had he left (Liverpool) before the World Cup, his fortunes may have been more favourable. It still would have been a battle between him and Boruc, but at least he would have been given a fighting chance. However, when called upon by the National Team, Dudek has shown that he still has the abilities to be a first choice keeper. But alas, he has still fallen out of favour.

Dudek now has a chance to possibly get back into regular action – both at the club level and with the National Team. This summer Dudek's contract with Liverpool finally is running out and he will be able to leave without Benitez's permission. A slave no more, Dudek may find his way back to Poland or Holland - two countries that have treated him much more favourably. At the age of 34, he is the oldest and most experienced of all the Polish keepers, but he is also still a capable keeper. That is why this is an important time for him. A move to the right team and his career may yet be revived. Otherwise, it may be lights out, and a sad end to an otherwise great career.

Like for many other Polish fans, Liverpool used to be a favourite of mine when Dudek joined the club. But just like Dudek's status with the club now, much has since changed.

Go Blues.