After a trip to the Portuguese city of Porto, most leave with fond memories of a place seen by many as Portugal’s most romantic.
Michal Probierz is not one of them.
Poland’s head coach is feeling the heat as the harsh winter begins to bite in his homeland.
A 5-1 Nations League thrashing at the hands of Roberto Martinez’s table-toppers while Scotland were battling to victory over Croatia has left them without a hope of finishing in the top two of the section as they prepare to welcome Steve Clarke’s Scotland to Warsaw on Monday.
Staying in League A is now their only target because of an inferior head-to-head record with Croatia, and Probierz has the added issue of being without many of his likely starters for the match with the Scots after watching his team dismantled in the second half by Ronaldo and co.
Already without star man Robert Lewandowski, who has been a thorn in the Scottish side more than once, the Poles have also been denied the services of defenders Jan Bednarek of Southamption and Sampdoria’s Bartosz Bereszynski, along with Fenerbahce midfielder Sebastian Szymanski who was injured in the warm-up before Friday’s match.
“Football life is like a whirlpool,” Probiersz said as he sifted through the wreckage of their pummelling in Porto. “If you get hit, you have to get up.”
Poland have never been outside the top tier of the Nations League and know avoiding defeat on the final matchday will ensure they stay there with Grant Hanley’s late penalty concession on the opening night looking ever more costly as the business end of this campaign comes into view.
The result in Portugal has been described as a “disgrace” in the Polish newspapers with the side’s ignominy compounded by the fact they have one of the worst defensive records in the entre competition.
Probiersz and his players returned to Warsaw on Saturday and were perhaps relieved that the fans who greeted them were more concerned with selfies and autographs than they were with berating them. The squad was happy to oblige.
In Poland, they vocally view Scotland as the weakest team in the section and anything other than a quickfire recovery on Monday evening from the mauling they have just received will be viewed dimly.
There was also an embarrassing incident as the goals rained in on Friday with striker Karol Swinderski waiting to enter the fray and earn his 38th cap only for the Polish staff to realise at the last second that he hadn’t actually been included on the official team-sheet. Cue more red faces.
Despite the furore that has engulfed Probiersz, Poland come into this match as favourites as Scotland chase an unlikely place in the Nations League quarter-finals and a place in pot one for the World Cup qualifying draw.
Their first-half performance in Porto was actually very good and they limited the Portuguese as Scotland had the month before. The roof caved in after the break and it appeared any energy the Polish players had was left in the changing room during the interval.
“I told the players that you have to take it on the chest, not hang your heads, not hide,” Probiersz added.
“I have been a coach for over 20 years, but such a combination of circumstances happens very rarely. In the first half we controlled the match, we had our chances.”
Former Poland captain Jacek Bak has warned the injury-ravaged team to prepare for a very hard game in Warsaw against the Scots and doesn’t feel Friday’s thrashing will count for anything when the sides step on to the pitch at the Polish National Stadium on Monday.
“I’m sad because before the break we really looked very good. And in the second half everything in our game fell apart, like a house of cards,” he told Polish newspaper Fakt.
“It will be tough, but I think we will manage. We have a better team than the Scots, we will play at home, we will have to run out and fight for this match, but I believe we will manage. Especially if we play like we did in the first half against Portugal.
“Now the most important thing is for the Poles to put the defeat in Porto out of their heads and focus on the most important task – defeating the Scots.”
Scotland remain big outsiders to finish in the top two of this section with many permutations potentially coming into play throughout what promises to be an exciting night.
However, they will have to overcome a wounded animal and a group of players with a point to prove if they are to stand a chance.
