Robert Lewandowski is back in the Poland squad as captain, according to manager Jan Urban. The Barcelona striker had stepped away from the national team due to a dispute with the former coach over losing his captaincy.
Urban took over in July after Michal Probierz resigned in June amid controversy over his decision to name Inter Milan’s Piotr Zielinski as captain instead of Lewandowski, Poland’s all-time leading scorer.
Poland is currently third in its World Cup qualifying group, trailing Finland and the Netherlands. Lewandowski’s presence is considered crucial for the team’s chances of qualifying for next year’s tournament.
Poland squad for FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers against Netherlands, Finland
Goalkeepers: Bartłomiej Drągowski (Panathinaikos), Kamil Grabara (Wolfsburg), Bartosz Mrozek (Lech Poznań), Łukasz Skorupski (Bologna)
Defenders: Jan Bednarek (FC Porto), Matty Cash (Aston Villa), Tomasz Kędziora (PAOK Salonika), Jakub Kiwior (Arsenal), Arkadiusz Pyrka (St. Pauli), Przemysław Wiśniewski (Spezia Calcio), Paweł Wszołek (Legia Warsaw), Jan Ziółkowski (Legia Warsaw)
Midfielders: Przemysław Frankowski (Galatasaray), Kamil Grosicki (Pogoń Szczecin), Jakub Kamiński (FC Cologne), Bartosz Kapustka (Legia Warsaw), Jakub Piotrowski (Udinese), Bartosz Slisz (Atlanta United), Sebastian Szymański (Fenerbahçe), Nicola Zalewski (Atalanta), Piotr Zieliński (Inter Milan)
Forwards: Adam Buksa (Udinese), Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona), Krzysztof Piątek (Al-Duhail), Karol Świderski (Panathinaikos)
Urban stated, “I want us to start training camp with a clean slate. Robert Lewandowski will be the team captain and will join me at the press conference on Monday. Piotr Zielinski has been named vice-captain, and Jan Bednarek will be the third captain.”
Poland’s next World Cup qualifier is against the Netherlands on September 4, followed by a home match against Finland three days later.
Lewandowski, 37, has netted 85 goals in 158 matches for Poland.
Published on Aug 29, 2025