The flash of Oskar Pietuszewski. This boy won the hearts of the Polish national team fans

There has been a lot of talk about Oskar Pietuszewski in recent weeks. Much of this is due to, among others, words spoken in a special interview for WPROST, given by Jan Urban.

The coach of the Polish national team did not hide the fact that he appreciated the talent of the FC Porto player, but he was not necessarily fascinated by the teenager’s talent. Urban rather appealed for common sense in the context of Pietuszewski.

– Today, Oskar is being taken to task, there were others earlier, but now we no longer talk about them. It all depended on their disposition. However, I don’t get excited so quickly when someone has a few good matches, half a round, or even half a year. And he has to play in the Polish national team immediately? In my opinion, that’s not how it works. On the other hand, if the choice is not very large, you often have to choose players who are in the right condition at a given moment and can help the national team. So you need to be able to maintain balance when making decisions, said the Polish coach.

Oskar Pietuszewski’s debut. The national team’s fans were enchanted!

Moreover, when it came to announcing the starting lineup, the Polish coach chose another teenager, Filip Rózga, in the starting lineup. The Sturm Graz player did not fail the match, but after the first 45 minutes the Poles had to chase the result, so Pietuszewski’s introduction turned out to be obvious. The attacking midfielder playing for FC Porto had just replaced Rózga, and as soon as his figure appeared on the stadium’s big screen, the fans welcomed the debutant on the pitch with an ovation.

We wrote in WPROST before the start of the match that the Pole could make the “entry of the dragon”. And indeed, on the left side of the pitch, Pietuszewski was causing a lot of confusion, playing through Albania’s defense again and again. There was certainly no specific goal or assist missing, but it should be remembered that this is a boy who is only at the beginning of his international career.

Pietuszewski showed only a sample of his capabilities. The scale of his talent is so great that it seems that the Polish national team will draw from it in the coming years.

And the fans? Apparently they fell in love with Pietuszewski at first sight. Will coach Urban choose the Pole from the beginning of the final clash between Sweden and Poland for tickets to the 2026 World Cup? It seems that the substitute role in Pietuszewski’s case is a good solution, giving more than one option if he is not on the pitch. Ultimately, however, the decision will be made by the coach himself, who certainly sees how the Polish diamond – from Białystok – is beginning to be polished before his eyes.

Sweden – Poland. When and where to watch the final of the World Cup play-offs?

After the UEFA zone semi-finals on Thursday (March 26), it became clear that Sweden and Poland would play in the direct match of the “Polish four”. The Poles defeated Albania at the PGE Narodowy (2:1), after a real thriller and the result was 0:1, while the Swedes confidently defeated Ukraine away (3:1).

The direct match for tickets to this year’s World Cup will take place next Tuesday (i.e. March 31). The place of the clash will be Strawberry Arena, the facility where AIK Solna players usually host.

Interestingly, both teams also faced each other in… the previous World Cup play-off final. On March 29, 2022, Poles won against the Swedes 2-0 – thanks to goals by Robert Lewandowski and Piotr Zieliński. Exactly the same duo that made Poland successful in the semi-final against Albania. At that time, the arena of the competition was the Silesian Stadium in Chorzów. And at stake was a trip to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where the team, led by coach Czesław Michniewicz, finally managed to advance to the knockout phase, but was eliminated in the first match of this part of the World Cup against the eventual runner-up of the world, France.

The Sweden-Poland match starts on March 31 (i.e. Tuesday) from 8:45 p.m. Broadcast on TVP1, TVP Sport and online on the TVP Sport website and via the station’s dedicated mobile application.