Like Łukasz Fabiański and Wojciech Szczęsny, now Marcin Bułka and Łukasz Skorupski. The competition for the title of number one in the Polish national team's goal has been fierce for years, to the benefit of the coaches, because both choices guarantee a high level. The jersey with the “number one” orphaned by Szczęsny after Euro 2024 is up for grabs, and as it turns out, one training camp was not enough for it to go to anyone permanently.
Skorupski won the first round. Will Bułka respond in October?
In September, Bułka played against Scotland (3:2), and Skorupski against Croatia (0:1). Although Poland won the match in which the former was the goalkeeper, it was the latter who received better reviews. If it weren't for Skorupski, we would have lost much higher in Osijek, and Nice's goalkeeper didn't look very solid in Glasgow. Now everything indicates that we will see Skorupski against Portugal on Saturday, October 12. Which, according to Michał Probierz's previous announcements, means that three days later Bułka will be in goal against the Croatians.
Łukasz Skorupski very honestly. “I will be very disappointed if this doesn't happen.”
This competition evokes a lot of emotions among the fans, but what about the players themselves? On this topic Skorupski said this in an interview for TVP Sport. The Bologni goalkeeper decided to be completely honest and said that in his opinion he was the most deserving of being called the new number one. – The coach will decide, but if I didn't become number one, I would be disappointed, I'm honest. It wouldn't be normal if I wasn't. I will give my maximum in every training and match. For now, I think it's going in the right direction, because I showed in all the national team matches that I'm OK, admitted Skorupski.
Let us add that the 33-year-old made his debut in the national team in 2012, and since the end of 2016 he has been regularly attending training camps. However, he only made twelve appearances because he was always number three behind Szczęsny and Fabiański, and then two when the latter finished his international career. Now he certainly feels that his time has come, although he emphasized that the competition between him and Bułka is healthy and there is no hostility or misunderstanding. When can we expect the final decision?
– I think that the first goalkeeper of the national team will be selected when the World Cup qualifiers start. The decision will be made then, because he will have to defend the main one all the time – said the Bologna goalkeeper.
The qualifying rounds for the 2026 World Cup will start differently for Poland, depending on which group we are in and the results in the Nations League. The five-team qualifying group will start the competition in March 2025, while the four-team group will start in September. The drawing itself will take place in December this year.