Poland ban player from Qatar World Cup squad for playing in Russia
While Poland put in the hard yards to prepare themselves for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar later this year, they will do so without veteran Maciej Rybus. GOAL reports that the 32-year-old has been banned from the Polish men's national team for the tournament.
The decision comes in the aftermath of Rybus' move to Russian club Spartak Moscow. He was one of the few Polish players under contract at Russian football clubs when Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine. The left-back has represented Lokomotiv Moscow since 2017, but his contract comes to an end this month.
While most players are looking to leave Russia after they invaded Ukraine, the Poland international has agreed terms with rival club Spartak Moscow to join on a free. His decision has backfired and he will now have to watch Poland compete in the 2022 World Cup from the comfort of his home.
Maciej Rybus' agent on why the player prefers to stay in Lokomotiv Moscow: 💬
"Maciej's wife is Russian, his sons were born in Moscow too. So what's he supposed to do? Bring them to Poland? Will they even be safe there once people hear them speak Russian?"
(Przeglad Sportowy) https://t.co/2yCYRucrRZ
For the unversed, Spartak Moscow were thrown out of the Europa League due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine when they were due to compete in the Round of 16, last season. Rybus' compatriots Grzegorz Krychowiak and Sebastian Szymanski are also under contract at Russian clubs Krasnodar and Dinamo Moscow respectively. However, both are willing to leave the country.
Polish FA shares official statement on Rybus's omission from 2022 World Cup
There has been no word from Czeslaw Michniewicz, the coach of the Poland national team, on his decision to omit the left-back with 66-caps for his nation. However, the Polish Football Association has given out their official statement concerning the same. The FA's statement read, via GOAL:
"The coach of the Polish national team, Czeslaw Michniewicz, talked to Maciej Rybus, who was currently staying in Poland, after the training camp of the national team ended last week."
He added:
"The coach informed the player that, due to his current club situation, he would not be called up for the September training camp of the national team and would not take into account the team that would go to the World Cup in Qatar when determining the composition of the team."
Poland has been one of Ukraine's strongest allies both economically and for sporting reasons since they were invaded. They refused to play Russia in the 2022 World Cup qualifying play-offs, a decision that was supported by the Swedish FA as well.
POLAND DROP RYBUS ❌
Maciej Rybus has been dropped by Poland after joining Russian club Spartak Moscow.
Coach Czeslaw Michniewicz has also ruled out selecting the defender for the 2022 World Cup.
Michniewicz personally informed Rybus of the PZPN's decision last week.
#PZPN https://t.co/HJDLbpTLjv
FIFA then banned Russia from the tournament altogether, which gave Poland a bye. They later beat Sweden 2-0 to qualify for the premier affair in Qatar and will face Argentina, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia in the group stages when the event kicks-off on November 21.