National team
Showdown with Lewandowski: Chance for “exclamation mark”
Gallop for Poland: Niclas Füllkrug, Benjamin Henrichs, Jonas Hofmann and Kai Havertz warm up. photo
© Federico Gambarini/dpa
The focus of the next European Championship test run in Warsaw will be on the German defense – and a big task ahead. After all, Poland has “one of the world’s best strikers”.
After the three goals conceded in the 1000th international match against Ukraine, the German national soccer team’s defense is the focus of the second European Championship test – and this because of a world-famous attacker.
Poland’s offensive is led by Robert Lewandowski, which makes the announced second three-chain attempt by national coach Hansi Flick on Friday at the National Stadium in Warsaw an extremely tricky task. “Defend uncompromisingly,” Flick named one of the main tasks after the negative experience against Ukraine in Bremen.
“Flammable before”
The German internationals and especially the former Bayern coach Flick know what to expect. “Lewy is one of the world’s best strikers that we have in our time. It is clear that he is extremely dangerous in front of goal,” said Jonas Hofmann from Gladbach about Lewandowski, who has not scored his goals in the Bundesliga for Bayern for a year Munich shoots, but for FC Barcelona – and for Poland’s national team. The 34-year-old Lewandowski has scored twice in four international matches against Germany.
Hofmann not only sees risks in the great defensive challenge against the two-time world footballer Lewandowski, but also opportunities. “Especially in situations like this, where it seems that the team should be a little unsure, it’s fun to show – even against one of the world’s best strikers – that you can keep a clean sheet. That would be a big exclamation mark again and would be excellent defensive work if you can stop players like that,” said Hofmann.