Young sensational midfielder Kacper Kozlowski is widely regarded as the next big thing to have emerged in Poland. With his potential on the rise, it is no surprise European elite clubs are hot on the trails of the teenage prodigy.
England’s Jude Bellingham becomes the youngest ever English player at a European Championship, and for a few days at least, the youngest ever player, too. Six days after Bellingham broke the record by coming on in the Three Lions’ game against Croatia, it fell again.
Poland’s Kacper Kozlowski was introduced in the Poland game against Spain and took the plaudits away from the Die Fohlen youngster.
Kacper Kozlowski, Poland’s New Talent
Kozlowski was born on October 16, 2003, whilst Bellingham was born on June 29, 2003 – small margins. Indeed, the two have faced each other at the international youth level and are likely to do so for many years to come.
It seems now that Kozlowski, barely known outside his homeland, is a significant target for some of Europe’s top clubs. A European Championship can make or break a player, and it might be that his appearance against Spain is the catalyst for his career to take off.
It is rumored that Barcelona, Dortmund, Manchester United, and Juventus are all now monitoring the progress of a player thought by many in Poland to be their most promising talent since Robert Lewandowski.
Kozlowski plies his trade with Pogon Szczecin, who finished third in the Ekstraklasa last season. He made his debut for his country earlier this year against Andorra, but his comfortable performance against Spain only served to underline that promise and put clubs on high alert.
It may not have been the case at all but for a slice of luck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3GiUyNFtEw
In January 2020, Kozlowski was on his way to training with two of his teammates when his car was involved in a severe accident. He sustained the most serious injuries, suffering a broken pelvis and three broken vertebrae in his lower back.
He couldn’t train for almost a year, making him a surprise inclusion in the Poland squad. The midfielder grew up idolizing one of Euro 2020’s record breakers, but he has seen his game mature over time, especially after his recent fight against adversity.
“Ever since I was a young boy, my idol has been Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, over time, I started to like and watch Paul Pogba more,” he told Goal in May.
“I think I can give more to the team as an offensive midfielder, but I can also work as a defensive midfielder.”
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Poland fans will undoubtedly be hoping he emulates one, if not both, of those players.
The Poles are traditionally a mediocre tournament team, rarely progressing beyond the group stages when they manage to qualify for a tournament. Lewandowski is the only undoubted star in the team, even his ability is fading as he gradually ages.
The Poles were down the list of Euro 2020 winner’s odds long before they found themselves up against Sweden, Slovakia, and Spain in the group stages as they entered a transition period. Whilst they may have come into the tournament somewhat apprehensive about their chances, they will exit it with a new sense of hope.
That is why the emergence of new exciting talent is so warmly received around the country. There is an acceptance of their place in the grand scheme of things as a middling team most likely to be classed as dark horses and nothing more, but the Polish fans would not expect an erosion of that position.
It is unthinkable that they miss out on Qatar 2022 after not appearing in the 2010 or 2014 World Cups, and with a new star to pin their hopes upon, their chances of qualification increase dramatically.
Who knows, with a driving force in midfield, a heartbeat pumping life around the team, they might even trouble the latter stages of a World Cup, which they have struggled to do since the era of Zbigniew Boniek in 1982.
Their chances will improve further if the calm and commanding youngster does join one of Europe’s top teams and establishes himself as one of the best players on the continent, as countrymen Lewandowski, Boniek, and Grzegorz Lato have done before him.
