36 matches17 goals and seven assists – these are Mateusz Bogusz's current statistics for this league season. It is no wonder that all the fans demanded his call-up to the squad. Coach Michał Probierz fulfilled their request and although the player did not play in the match against Scotland, he started in the starting line-up in the confrontation with the Croatians.
This is how Bogusz commented on his debut in the Polish national team. “These are not easy things”
“Wherever and whenever you make your debut, you're unlucky if Josko Gvardiol stands in your way. One of the best defenders in Premier League he didn't let him do practically anything. He was faster, stronger and more clever. He gave the Pole a lesson in pressing” – wrote Dawid Szymczak from Sport.pl, who rated Bogusz's performance as -2.
He noted that competing with the Manchester City defender caused him a lot of problems. – I'm not a typical physical player to fight like that. Unfortunately, but that was the game today, there were a lot of balls that had to be collected and fought. Obviously, Gvardiol was not an easy opponent, but I did everything I could – he explained.
The 22-year-old also mentioned that his cooperation with Robert Lewandowski did not go according to plan, as they did not have much time to play together. However, he remains optimistic. – It was my first match, obviously we did not understand each other that well. But it will get better from training camp to training camp – he declared.
Kacper Sosnowski from Sport.pl was not so optimistic. “Bogusz was not visible that day. He had only 28 contacts with the ball. Of course, the third team of the last world championship was leading the game that day, but Poland needed a player who would make a difference. Bogusz would sometimes lose the ball when trying to turn with it in the middle of the pitch (it's good that it didn't result in a dangerous counterattack), and he would lose it after duels with the opponent” – passed on.
Finally, the player briefly summed up his performance. – It was my dream, I managed to make it come true. It wasn't an easy debut. We played against Croatia, one of the best teams in the world. A difficult match, but I've got it behind me now, I hope it will only get better – he concluded.
Poles will play the next matches LN is in a month. First, on October 12, they will face Portugal at home, and three days later they will play the return match against Croatia.