Compelled to advance

Last week, Lech beat the team from Luxembourg 2:0 following goals from Kristoffer Velde and Mikael Ishak. The win was a significant step towards advancing to the group phase of the Europa Conference League. However, there is still the second leg – on Thursday, the two teams will face each other at Stade de Luxemburg at 8:30 pm. According to Filip Bednarek, his squad is compelled to advance to the next stage of the European competition.

“When playing in Europe, such an advantage is neither big nor small. It’s not the same as against Dinamo Batumi when we won 5:0 in the first game and, therefore, had a bigger comfort and a bigger error margin. Of course, The two goals give us some sense of calm, but we remain fully focused. We are compelled to seal the promotion to the group phase,” emphasized the goalkeeper.

In the recent clash against F91 Dudelange, Filip Bednarek managed to keep a clean sheet. If he repeats his achievement on Thursday, it will be the first time in this season that Lech doesn’t concede a goal in two matches in a row. According to the goalkeeper, that would be a nice bonus, but advancing to the group stage of the Europa Conference League is a priority. “It’s a nice cherry on top for every keeper, but for me, the promotion to the next stage is what really matters. A clean sheet is a reward for the whole team and a sign that we worked well in the defense. Last season, we achieved a clean sheet regularly, and we are striving to do the same in this campaign too. Our opponents have been creating plenty of goal-scoring opportunities in the recent matches, but we are working hard to change that,” explained Lech’s current no. 1 goalkeeper.

Bednarek was one of the heroes of the last European clash which had the group stage at stake. In October 2020, the goalkeeper saved a penalty kick against RSC Charleroi and a 2:1 win put the squad through to the group phase of the Europa League. With that match in mind, Bednarek is well aware that the performance in the national league, as well as the style of play, are equally important as European competition.

“European matches have their own rules, and so we are adapting a wider perspective, not just focusing on one match. We want to perform well in the European arena, but at the same time, we also need to start winning league points. I focus on all that is in my hands – I am working as hard as I can together with the goalkeepers’ coach. Our team isn't yet at its best – we are still adjusting. Ourselves and our supporters got used to us performing much differently. Hence why we felt angry after the match against F91 Dudelange – we thrive on dominating on the pitch. We are still working on that and, hopefully, soon we will play the way we did last season, and we will not only please ourselves but also the supporters, who want to see us perform superbly,” added Bednarek.