Poland boss Czesław Michniewicz has moved to explain why Mateusz Klich was left out of his squad for the World Cup. Klich was involved in Michniewicz’s provisional squad, but the Leeds United man failed to make the final cut as the national manager opted for other options.
The news will have come as a huge blow for the midfielder, who started the campaign with the target of nailing down his spot on the plane to Qatar. Klich has won 41 caps for Poland, with his last coming in the Nations League loss to the Netherlands in September.
Unfortunately, though, the 32-year-old has struggled for minutes in a Leeds shirt under Jesse Marsch and as it stands, he hasn’t started a single Premier League game this season. That lack of game time won’t have helped his chances, that is for certain.
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Michniewicz admits the decision to leave out Klich was not taken lightly, but ultimately, he just couldn’t do enough to force his way into the 26-man squad.
“There are Bielik and Krychowiak,” the Poland boss told TVP Sport, via Sport Witness. “Next to them may be Szymański and Żurkowski.
“In addition, there are others who can be tens – Zieliński and Szymański Sebastian. There was no room for Klich, although it was not an easy decision.
“We watched him to the end.”
Klich was linked with a move away from Elland Road in August, with reports suggesting the midfielder was willing to leave the Whites to pick up the game time needed to secure his spot in the squad. Ultimately, the midfielder stayed in West Yorkshire to fight for his spot under Marsch.
He has made 11 Premier League outings, but they have all been off the bench, with his average time spent on the field just 17 minutes. His only senior starts have come in the Carabao Cup, with his latest being on Wednesday night against Wolves at Molineux.
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