Piotr Zielinski was the hero as Poland beat Albania to reach the World Cup play-off final, with the Inter Milan midfielder scoring the decisive goal and delivering an emotional reaction afterwards.
Speaking to TV PSport, via FCInterNews, the Inter star was effusive in his praise for the squad.
“An enormous thank you to the whole team for how we started the second half,” he said.
“We fought and we wanted to win. Our opponents had two counter-attacks but Kamil Grabara was ready. We won this match and we did it for all of Poland. We know we have another final to win.”
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Zielinski also revealed the belief that existed within the squad from the very start of the game.
“We started brilliantly. Bereszynski told me that after the first 15 minutes he thought we would win 3-0 or 4-0 because we were playing so well,” he said. “However, we needed to confirm it with a goal. In the end our opponents scored first, but that only fired us up.”
He acknowledged the difficulty of the task too.
“Everyone knew the technical quality was on our side. But in football you also have to run, fight and give your heart. The Albanians gave us a real battle. They are a team that could have made history. We are glad quality won out in the end.”
Zielinski left the pitch ten minutes after scoring as a precaution.
“I had some small muscular problems last year so now I treat any tension carefully. I prefer to come off to avoid another injury.”