Robert Lewandowski has reacted to his penalty miss against Mexico in Group C opener.
The Poland skipper failed to break his World Cup duck when he saw a second-half penalty saved in a goalless but entertaining draw with Mexico in their opening Group C game at Stadium 974 on Tuesday.
He earned the penalty after a VAR check 11 minutes into the second half when Hector Moreno tugged at his shirt in the box. But the Polish striker, who has never scored at the World Cup, saw his shot saved by goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.
However, the Barcelona striker has found it difficult to smile and understand it after the game. Not because he was not satisfied with his performance or that of the team, but because he missed the penalty just, which could have had a big impact on the game.
“We played smart and should win. This is getting harder for me to accept. Sorry, and thanks for all the words of support. We keep striving for promotion,” Lewandowski posted on his Facebook handle.
Victory for either side would have been a real springboard towards the knockout stage in a group which has been blown wide open by Saudi Arabia’s shock victory over Argentina earlier on Tuesday.
But the head coach for Poland, Michniewicz has called upon Lewandowski to dig deep and recover from his disappointment following his emotional reactions
“I sympathised with him, I know how a captain who misses a penalty feels,” he said. “He was very emotional about it.
“We have a monitor in the dressing room, he watched a few replays of it. He has to digest it himself, he knows how he will deal with the situation. We know he will help us a lot in this tournament.
“When he misses there is always the question ‘why?’ Yesterday he trained on penalties and he never missed. But this happens.”
The result from Poland and Mexico game leaves Saudi Arabia as group leaders following their stunning upset of Argentina, one of the pre-tournament favourites, earlier in the day.
Poland will in their next contes play Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
