WARSAW, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Poland coach Paulo Sousa announced on Monday the list of 26 players who will play in the UEFA Euro 2020 finals.
The greatest surprise is the absence of West Bromwich Albion winger Kamil Grosicki, who was one of the leaders of the team in recent years. The reason is the fact that the player doesn't play regularly in the club.
"At such moments, emotions must be set aside. I had to make difficult decisions. I know what Kamil can represent. However, Grosicki will not play, because we have chosen a different path. It was not an easy decision," Sousa explained.
In the group stage of the tournament, Poland will face Spain, Sweden and Slovakia.
"We feel support from the Polish Football Association. There are some strong teams who can win the tournament such as Portugal, France, Germany or Belgium, but we also can achieve something special. We have Robert Lewandowski and we will use his leadership. What is more, there are other experienced players. We need unity, faith and confidence," the coach added.
There is a strong rivalry between Wojciech Szczesny from Juventus FC and West Ham United goalie Lukasz Fabianski to stand between the posts, but Sousa unveiled who will be his number one during the tournament.
"Wojciech Szczesny will start the UEFA Euro in the first eleven. Of course, the hierarchy can change because football is changeable. At the moment, however, Szczesny is number one," the 50-year-old concluded.
Following is Poland's squad for UEFA Euro 2020:
Goalkeepers: Lukasz Fabianski (West Ham United), Lukasz Skorupski (Bologna FC), Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus FC), Radoslaw Majecki (AS Monaco)
Defenders: Jan Bednarek (Southampton FC), Bartosz Bereszynski (UC Sampdoria), Pawel Dawidowicz (Hellas Verona), Michal Helik (Barnsley FC), Kamil Glik (Benevento Calcio), Tomasz Kedziora (Dinamo Kyiv), Kamil Piatkowski (Rakow Czstochowa), Tymoteusz Puchacz (Lech Poznan), Maciej Rybus (Lokomotiv Moscow)
Midfielders: Przemyslaw Frankowski (Chicago Fire), Kamil Jozwiak (Derby County), Mateusz Klich (Leeds United), Kacper Kozlowski (Pogon Szczecin), Grzegorz Krychowiak (Lokomotiv Moscow), Karol Linetty (Torino FC), Jakub Moder (Brighton and Hove Albion FC), Przemyslaw Placheta (Norwich City), Piotr Zielinski (SSC Napoli).
Forwards: Dawid Kownacki (Fortuna Dusseldorf), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich), Arkadiusz Milik (Olympique Marseille), Karol Swiderski (PAOK), Jakub Swierczok (Piast Gliwice). Enditem