Soccer

Poland refuse to play Russia in upcoming World Cup playoff

Robert Lewandowski backs Polish FA decision to boycott match after Ukraine invasion

Poland’s Robert Lewandowski: backs Polish FA decision. Photograph: Leszek Szymanski/EPA

Sat Feb 26 2022 - 10:23

Robert Lewandowski has backed the Polish Football Association's decision to refuse to play Russia in their upcoming World Cup playoff.

The Poles were due to face Russia in Moscow on March 24th in a play-off semi-final for the World Cup in Qatar later this year.

Polish FA president Cezary Kulesza said on Saturday that Poland will boycott the match following Russia's decision to invade Ukraine.

Retweeting a post from Kulesza, striker Lewandowski wrote: “It is the right decision! I can’t imagine playing a match with the Russian National Team in a situation when armed aggression in Ukraine continues.

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“Russian footballers and fans are not responsible for this, but we can’t pretend that nothing is happening.”

The match comes under Path B of the European qualifying play-offs for the World Cup, with the winners due to play Sweden or the Czech Republic for a place in the tournament.

The wording of the tweet from Kulesza was also reiterated in a statement obtained by The Athletic, which read: "No more words, time to act! Due to the escalation of the aggression of the Russian Federation towards Ukraine, the Polish national team does not intend to play the play-off match against Russia. "This is the only right decision. We are in talks with the federations of Sweden and the Czech Republic to bring forward a common position to Fifa."

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