The Poles are satisfied with the result of the match with Ukraine (3:1), but are worried about the fact that several players were injured on the eve of the European Championship. Local fans write that even the second team of their national team shows good potential, so they have pleasant expectations for the upcoming Euro 2024. It is interesting that before the match, the Poles were more cautious about the Ukrainian national team and considered it a more or less equal opponent. Now they are sure that the Polish national team is stronger.
Taras Romanchuk. Photo: Newspix.plOf course, there has been a lot of talk about Taras Romanchuk and his goal against the Ukrainian national team. Despite the fact that he took Polish citizenship in 2018, not everyone likes him playing for the national team. Many Poles still consider Romanchuk to be a Ukrainian, so they prefer that those who were born in Poland be called up to the national team, rather than those who were granted citizenship because they were "unwanted" in their country. They also believe that in the future, such situations may become commonplace, because now many Ukrainians living in Poland want to stay and become citizens of this country.
Rafal: There's a lot of talk about Romanchuk and his goal, that he was happy to score a goal for his home country. I don't really want to talk about this topic, there are too many nuances here, if he was allowed to play for the national team, it's too late to ask him not to be called up to the national team. Another question is that the guy is already 32 years old, he may get a chance to play at the Euros. Isn't it better to give young Poles a chance?
Szulta: I wouldn't say that the Ukrainians played as a second team. Yarmolenko, Dovbyk, Mykolenko are the players of the base. In the second half, Mudryk, Tsygankov and Zinchenko came on - also key players for Ukraine. We confidently beat a strong team. We need to praise our players now, not write about the fact that the opponent did not play with the first team.
Kwiatkowski: Until the 60th minute, I was sure that Poland would score one or two more goals. After the 60th minute, I was already worried that we might concede again. In any case, I liked the game. In the first half we played well in attack. In the second half, we showed that we can defend.
Pasciak: I think that Lewandowski's time has already passed. As soon as he came on the field, the game in attack changed for the worse. Without him, Poland looked much more interesting at the other team's goal. With all due respect to Robert, it's time to end his career in the national team.
Dworak: I liked the first half, we were active in attack and reliable in defense. But injuries changed the situation on the field. I hope all our players can recover quickly. In general, I liked the game. In the second half, we worked harder on defense and managed to stop the Ukrainians, who did not do well.
Janczura: Three goals in 30 minutes is fantastic! I don't remember the last time we scored so many goals so quickly. Probably, this happened only in the matches against the national teams of San Marino and Gibraltar. Ukraine surprised me. I thought they were a stronger team.
Prencel: The first half was very strong. In the second half, the Ukrainians strengthened the team with key players and did everything they wanted to do. If we assume that both teams played with the second team from the first minutes, then if we and they had the same foundation, we would hardly have had a chance.
Garbacz: Romanchuk is desperately trying to prove that he has become a real Pole, but I don't think we should call him up to the national team at all. I believe that UEFA and FIFA should not allow changing citizenship. Otherwise, it turns out that a person could not achieve anything in his country, and then takes the place of a native in another country. And I'm not just talking about Poland. This is happening all over the world.
Kacper: Ukrainians will definitely be angry today. A former citizen of this country helped Poland win against a principled rival. A true Hollywood story. I wouldn't be surprised if they make a movie about this topic one day.
Wegrzin: It's a strange situation: a Ukrainian scores against Ukrainians and is happy about it. Romanchuk never became a Pole for me. He became a citizen when he was 26, if I'm not mistaken. He owes a lot to Ukraine and was born there. I didn't think he would celebrate a goal against his home country.
Kuba: I wouldn't rush to get too excited. Most likely, the Ukrainians played their worst game today. At the European Championship, we will see the real strength of Poland in the match against the Netherlands. It's like the Ukrainians, who were happy to draw with Germany and then lost to us.
Bozek: Those who are now unhappy with Romanchuk's call-up to the national team are forgetting what is happening in Poland. Millions of Ukrainians moved to live in our country, in particular after the outbreak of the war. A lot of them will stay in Poland forever, work here, play sports, and get citizenship. In 15-20 years, our country will have a whole generation of Ukrainians who have become Poles. There will be thousands of Ukrainians who will prove themselves in sports, and we will need to call them to the national football, volleyball, and other teams. Look at neighboring Germany, where a Turkish native is the team captain, and an African is their best defender. Half of their national team is not native Germans. It's better to have Ukrainians play for our team than a conditional Olisadebe.
Suscek: All season I was rooting for Robert Lewandowski in the Spanish league, but I have to admit that Artem Dovbyk is much stronger and more interesting than our fading star. The Ukrainian has rightfully become the best player in Spain. But Robert's best years are already behind him.
Wiel: Romanchuk scores the debut goal for Ukraine. You don't see that often even in movies. Life sometimes gives us surprises. But I am pleased that Taras celebrated this goal. It was the moment when we could see whether he remained a Ukrainian in his heart or became a Pole.
Bzrdy: I can't imagine a Pole wanting to become a Ukrainian. Probably, such cases happen, but hardly often. Especially in sports. But even if this happened, I would not want a "former" Pole to celebrate a goal against our team. It would be wrong.
Lisiecki: A beautiful story and a great moment for Taras. Romanchuk often talked about how he was not appreciated in Ukraine, not given a chance to prove himself in football. But in Poland, they believed in him. That is why he became a Pole and loves our country. It was great that he scored his debut goal against Ukraine. Ukrainians now obviously regret missing out on such a player.
Domzol: Ukraine is one of the best teams in Europe. Even if they didn't play with the first team, it's very nice to win against them. In the second half, when Mudryk, Zinchenko and Tsygankov came on, it was much harder for us to play. But in general, the game left a pleasant impression.
Kamil: Romanchuk shut the haters up today. First he scored a goal, and then he kissed the Polish coat of arms on his shirt. Taras has already proved to everyone that he no longer loves Ukraine, that he doesn't want to be a Ukrainian, he wants to be a Pole.
Mizuk: We seem to have won, we can be happy... But I feel anxious. In the second half, Ukraine pressed us hard and we were lucky not to concede again. Yes, 3-1 is a good result. But will it be enough to beat the Netherlands and Austria? I'm not even talking about France.
Smolem: In football, it is customary that if a player scores a goal against his former club, he doesn't celebrate, he raises his hands. Unless he was kicked off the team. But this is in club competitions. Has there ever been a case in football where a player changed his citizenship and then scored a goal against his former country? I don't recall such a thing. It is quite possible that we have witnessed a unique story.
