WARSAW, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Polish Football Association announced on Tuesday that Portuguese Fernando Santos takes over the Poland football national team.
Santos was sacked by Portugal in December 2022 after the FIFA World Cup quarterfinal defeat against Morocco but the 68-year old, who led Portugal to the European championship title in 2016, did not stay out of the market for long as coach, and started to negotiate with the Polish Football Association (PZPN).
"It's a great honor for me because Poland is a great country, with an extremely rich history and culture. Polish football also has a history that has marked my generation. I've been following for years. Matches against Poland have always been very difficult," Santos said at the first press conference in Poland on Tuesday.
"From today I am a Pole. I am one of you. And we will do everything to provide Poles with a lot of joy. It will take a lot of work, but we are ready for it," the coach added.
Former Polish defender Lukasz Piszczek is considered as one of the members of the new coaching staff.
PZPN president Cezary Kulesza was happy with the deal.
"We wanted a coach who has experience by working for the national team in the past, so that he would not have to learn this job. We also took into account the achievements and charisma. Today we have a coach who meets all these conditions," he said.
Santos' main objective is to lead Poland to qualify for the UEFA Euro 2024. ■
