Lech Poznan eased past Podbeskidzie in a much-needed home win. They played strong positive football, often setting up in a 4-2-3-1 out of possession and a 3-4-3 in possession, with the fullbacks pushed up and both wingers cutting inside to form a more narrow front three. Captain Thomas Rogne opened the scoring with a fine header on 31 minutes, and striker Mikael Ishak capitalised on a loose ball just before halftime to put the railwaymen in control at the break. 2 quick goals from Pedro Tiba and Dani Ramirez early in the second half put the game past Podbeskidzie and Lech were able to see out the game with a clean sheet. An impressive performance that pushes Lech up to 7th in the Ekstraklasa table.
Ratings
- A1 – Very good, could play higher
- A2 – Strong potential to play higher
- B1 – Good, strong player at level
- B2 – Potential to be strong player at level
- C – Average for the level, rewatch
- D – Below average in this match
Jakub Moder
- Nationality: Polish
- Age: 21
- Date of birth: 07/04/1999
- Current Club: Lech Poznan (L)
- Career: Lech Poznan, Odra Opole (L), Brighton and Hove Albion, Lech Poznan (L)
- Position: Centre Midfield
- Preferred foot: Right
Moder played out an impressive performance from centre midfield, lining up alongside Pedro Tiba. He often dropped between centre backs in attacking buildup, and looked for long balls to wingers and full-backs down the side channels of the pitch. His passing range was exceptional at times, with his long balls often weighted well for the onrushing attacker to bring down easily. Podbeskidzie looked to sit deep and hit on the counter for large parts of the game, so he was rarely put under a heavy press, allowing Moder to take more time on the ball and pick the right pass, which he often did so.
The Pole also looked forwards often, and he is a powerful runner with the ball. Although not the most technical dribbler, his 6’3″ frame and long strides allowed him to burst into pockets and break lines with relative ease. In the final third he often looked to shoot from distance, taking 3 shots in the game with 100% accuracy. He was unlucky not to score and the Podbeskidzie goalkeeper made a fine save from one of his efforts.
Defensively he was generally sound throughout the game, and was strong in the tackle, using his long legs to poke the ball away from attackers. His work rate late him down at times, as when Podbeskidzie looked to counter he often jogged back, instead of showing desire to get back and defend. He also had a lack of mobility when turning back to defend, although with his height is understandable. His interceptions were strong however, with good awareness and anticipation to break up play throughout the game.
Overall Moder had a sound game, however he has small weaknesses he needs to iron out before he becomes a regular in the Brighton line up. He draws strong comparisons to Sander Berge in my opinion, and his natural strength and size will suit him well in the Premier League.
Rating – A1
- Nationality: Polish
- Age: 18
- Date of brith: 05/06/2002
- Current Club: Lech Poznan
- Career: Lech Poznan
- Position: Left Wing
- Preferred foot: Right
Kaminski lined up on the left wing, but often switched wings with Jan Sykora. He loved to cut in onto his right foot, and his dribbling was generally strong in doing so. He showed good agility and balance on the ball, and looked lively on it. His movement was consistently good throughout, and had combination play with Ramirez who played more centrally. For someone so young he got on the ball often, and looked confident and deliberate with most of his passing and dribbling actions. His acceleration was good but his top speed was not exceptional, and he wasn’t especially explosive on the ball.
He let himself down in the box more often than not, with his touches sometimes being a bit heavy and he also dwelled too long on the ball. For an 18 year old this lack of composure was obvious, however he has lots of time to develop. He showed good work rate in tracking back however, and managed to win the ball back on a couple of occasions showing decent aggression in the tackle.
Overall Kaminski is a very raw yet talented winger, and he had a decent game up until his substitution in the 59th minute. I feel he has good technical ability and with better composure in the final third to start recording more goals and assists, he could become a strong prospect.
Rating – B2
- Nationality: Ukrainian
- Age: 23
- 20/08/1997
- Current Club: Lech Poznan (L)
- Career: Karpaty Lviv, CD Lugo, CD Leganes, Lech Poznan (L)
- Position: Left Back
- Preferred foot: Left
Kravets started the game as a Left back, but often found himself much further up the pitch as Lech transitioned into a 3-4-3 formation in attack. He showed good physicality in the game and with 1 on 1 duels, however was rarely troubled by the Podbeskidzie attack. Kravets was also generally sound in the air due to his 6’1″ frame, however lacked direction on his headers, and should have scored a free header in the 12th minute.
He lacked pace and acceleration, and when looking to overlap was often caught lacking by the Podbeskidzie right back, who had little issue in catching up to the Ukrainian. His dribbling was average, with a slight lack of agility and balance, but his touch was almost always positive and generally good. He had good vision in looking for dinked balls over the Podbeskidzie back line, but was let down by his poor passing performance, recording the lowest pass success in the starting line up with 69%.
Overall Kravets had a quiet game, was required to do little defensively yet offered little offensively. He had no outstanding qualities that made him stand out as a quality full back, as he lacked quality delivery into the box, as well as lacking pace and acceleration. He seemed much more of a defensive full back, and a re-watch where Lech are more challenged defensively would be necessary.
Rating – C