Jakub Blaszczykowski celebrated an emotional farewell at the international match between Poland and Germany in Warsaw. The former Bundesliga player will no longer play for the national team.
At the international match on Friday evening (June 16, 2023), Blaszczykowski, the man with number 16, was substituted after 16 minutes, as previously announced. He left the pitch through a trellis of his teammates and was hugged by his family in front of the catacombs, the fans in Warsaw celebrated him with chants.
Both national teams formed a trellis for the former Dortmund and Wolfsburg player known as “Kuba”. His family is waiting in the players’ tunnel for a warm hug. During the friendly, Blaszczykowski even had the chance to score in the 13th minute. In the running duel with Malick Thiaw, the 21-year-old debutant of the DFB selection was faster.
Blaszczykowski: “End of a dream”
“It’s getting hard for me to contain my emotions. I would like to do it, but it will be impossible. This is the end of my dream“, said the former Dortmund player before the kick-off. The 37-year-old had returned to the Polish team after four years, wore the national team jersey in 109 games and scored 21 goals. Blaszczykowski only managed two goals after a cruciate ligament rupture Short appearances for the second division club Wisla Krakow.
“The national team has been with me my whole life. For as long as I can remember it has been my dream to play for them, to represent our country. The game is the end of a stage“, said “Cuba” and added: “A part of me will feel this pain forever.”