The Polish media sharply criticized the national football team for the 1:3 defeat in Prague in the opening match of the qualification for the European Championship.
Among other things, she stated that the Czech team had prepared a disastrous debut on the Polish bench for new coach Fernando Santos. Journalists condemned the visiting team mainly for the two goals conceded in the opening three minutes.
“The Czechs gave the Poles a cold shower. A disastrous debut for Fernando Santos. The Red and Whites started the Euro qualifiers in the worst possible way,” reported Dziennik Gazeta Prawna on its website.
“A three-goal drama, a nightmare and a disaster. The match between the Czech Republic and Poland was a disastrous debut for Santos. We only wiped away tears with our goal. Everything was wrong in Prague – the game, the result and the style,” added the newspaper Fakt in its online edition.
According to the media, the former coach of the Portuguese national team Santos seemed helpless on the bench. “Under the leadership of the most successful coach to whom the Polish Football Association has ever entrusted the national team, the players experienced a nightmare. Probably no Polish coach had such a hopeless debut,” wrote Gazeta Wyborcza.
“Frustration, anger, helplessness – these are the words to describe the emotions of Fernando Santos during his debut as coach of the Polish national team. The Polish team was discredited in Prague and Santos resembled a person from Internet memes,” added the website Sport.pl.
He, along with other media, criticized the guests’ poor entry into the match in the sold-out Eden. After 27 seconds, Ladislav Krejčí Jr. scored the fastest goal of the Czech national team since the division of the federation, and at the start of the third minute, Tomáš Čvančara also increased the score with his first goal in the national A-team. Jan Kuchta scored in the 64th minute. Substitute Damian Szymaňski scored for the Poles in the end.
“A shocking, shocking and embarrassing start. Not only the fans and players were confused, whose surprise was mixed with mutual reproaches, but also the coach. Fernando Santos calmed down the players after the first goal, after the second he just ostentatiously waved his hand at their approach,” pointed out Sport.pl .
“In boxing terminology, the Poles were knocked out after only 130 seconds. Although they had over 90 minutes to respond, they only hit the opponent once. And they got another blow,” TVP added on its website.
Gazeta Wyborcza described the Polish introduction in Prague as grotesque. “Even the best team can experience a similar setback, but two setbacks before the game really starts? Not even postmen or bank officials who pose as professionals in San Marino or Gibraltar jerseys and face tycoons give up the game like that.”
