Homegrown players abroad

Dominating Italy

First, first travel to Italy where you can find the most numerous group of Lech’s homegrown players. Looking at their teams’ accomplishments in 2019, the past year has definitely not been an easy one. Sampdoria has had their ups and downs. The 2018/19 campaign was considered fairly satisfactory, however the kick-off of the current season not so much. Despite disappointing results, Linetty and Bereszynki kept their spot in the starting line-up. Lech’s academy products missed a few matches only, all caused by injuries. Bereszynki fell victim to a more serious injury during November international break. A damaged meniscus forced the defender to stay off the pitch for the last 5 games of the autumn round. Meanwhile, Linetty finished the year on a high note. In the clash with Juventus (1:2), he wore the captain armband for the second time.

Bartosz Salamon returned to SPAL after a year-long loan to Frosinone and is still awaiting his debut in the current campaign. The past year has been a successful one for Salamon as he regularly appeared on the pitch.

Hard work in England

2019 was a great year for Krystian Bielik too. The youngster won promotion to Championship with Charlton Athletic where he has been playing on loan. After his great performance during U-21 Euro Championships, Bielik aroused the interest of multiple clubs. The Polish player decided to opt for Derby County which was a good choice since he has quickly won a place in the starting line-up. Even though Derby is ranked in the lower half of the table, Bielik has also caught the eye of the Polish National Team coach.

One division up, Jan Bednarek is improving his Premier League statistics. The 23-year-old has a permanent spot in the starting eleven. The defender featured in all league matches in 2019 which means he now has over 50 appearances for the Saints. Nonetheless, Bednarek doesn’t have many reasons to rejoice currently. The past year hasn’t been an easy one for Southampton but they managed to end of the year with two positive highlights – a 2:0 win against Chelsea and 1:0 win against Tottenham.

Not far from home

Last season, Tomasz Kedziora and his teammates were crowned vice-champions of Ukraine hence they were given the chance to show their capabilities on the international arena. Dynamo Kiev’s performance in Champions League finished on the group stage. Therefore, the Ukrainian side was forced to focus on the league where they’re doing well, however, they’re far behind Shakhtar Donetsk. The 25-year-old defender appeared regularly on the pitch over the past year. He would only occasionally miss a game or two, including a few in the past 3 months.

Lastly, we ought to see how Dawid Kownacki is doing. During his 6-month loan from Sampdoria, Fortuna Dusseldorf management was impressed with the young forward and they decided to bring him to Germany on a definitive transfer. However, the last few months weren’t successful for Dawid – he failed to score despite regular appearances. Indisputably, an injury and a new position made it harder for the young striker to improve his statistics. If we take a look at the whole team, they haven’t met the expectations either.

Meanwhile, Marcin Kaminski had a great start of 2019, but the current campaign has been a disappointment for the defender. Lech’s homegrown player tore his cruciate ligament in the first game of the 2019/20 season. We wish the defender a quick recovery!