POLAND VS SLOVAKIA
St. Petersburg. Monday night. Gear up for Poland’s match with Slovakia in Euro 2020 as both nations lock horns for the very first time in a major international tournament in Russia. Matches between these two sides are normally close affairs that are low-scoring in nature.
EURO 2020 kicks off tonight! 😀
Drop a GIF 📱👇 to sum up your mood…#EURO2020
— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) June 11, 2021
But expect both teams to go all out in search of a win before they square up with fellow Group E sides Spain and Sweden in subsequent matches in Euro 2020.
FootTheBall takes a look at how both Poland and Slovakia stack up ahead of their crunch clash in St. Petersburg, Russia in Group E
TEAM NEWS
Paulo Sousa is without any major injury headaches ahead of Poland’s opener in Russia. As such, he will be able to count on all his first-team regular players in their match with Slovakia.
[DO POBRANIA] Oficjalny magazyn reprezentacji Polski na UEFA EURO 2020! 🇵🇱
A tam między innymi wywiady z:
👉 Paulo Sousą,
👉 Tomaszem Kędziorą,
👉 Bartoszem Bereszyńskim.
Analiza sezonu Piotra Zielińskiego czy Mateusza Klicha i dużo innych świetnych tekstów. 👀— Łączy nas piłka (@LaczyNasPilka) June 8, 2021
Poland probable starting line-up (4-4-2) : Szczesny; Kedziora, Glik, Dawidowicz, Puchacz; Frankowski, Moder, Krychowiak, Zielinski; Lewandowski, Swierczok
Likewise, Slovakia are also without any injury concerns as their first match in Euro 2020 beckons in St. Petersburg. Stefan Tarkovic can call upon the services of all his first-team players.
Slovensko ide na EURO2020#slovenskisokoli #euro2020 #playoff #NorthernIreland pic.twitter.com/R9rEQFOzUG
— SFZ (official) (@sfzofficial) November 13, 2020
Slovakia probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1) : Kuciak; Pekarik, Satka, Vavro, Holubek; Lobotka, Bero; Haraslin, Hamsik, Benes; Bozenik
GAME CHANGERS
The Polish will be looking up to none other than Robert Lewandowski to guide them safely into the knockout stage after having a breathtaking season with Bavarian giants Bayern Munich in Germany.
The Polish forward scored a whopping 41 goals in 29 appearances in the German top flight this past season and is in the form of his life as he broke Gerd Muller’s record for most goals in the German first division.
As such, the eyes will be on the Bayern Munich forward to come up with the goods in matches (especially with Spain and Sweden) if the Poles desire to qualify for the next round.
Lewandowski has scored 3 goals in 3 matches for Poland in competitive matches and will surely be in the thick of things for the White and Reds in Euro 2020.
For Slovakia, the player to look out for is definitely Marek Hamsik. No one in the Slovakia national football team has either played more matches (126) or scored more goals (26) than the former Napoli attacking midfielder.
Ever since making his debut for Slovakia in 2007, Hamsik has been at the centre of the team set-up and this time too, the Slovaks will be counting on his influential presence to guide them through to the knockout stage in Euro 2020.
The Slovaks were able to make it to the last 16 last time in the quadrennial tournament, and will be pinning their hopes on Hamsik – who has been the fulcrum for them throughout his international career.
PREDICTION
A Robert Lewandowski inspired Poland look like slight favourites entering this match as the Bayern Munich forward will be spearheading their attack on the back of a spectacular season for Die Roten in Germany.
But Slovakia will be looking to cause an upset as Marek Hamsik and company bid to qualify for the last 16 for the second consecutive time in the Euros.
Expect the game to go right down to the wire in St. Petersburg as the Poles will earn a hard-fought and last-gasp victory in Russia. FootTheBall’s prediction for this match is as follows: Poland 2-1 Slovakia