Barcelona star Robert Lewandowski has gone public with his version of events leading to what could be a premature retirement from international duty. After Poland manager Michal Probierz decided to take away the captaincy, Lewandowski announced on social media that he would no longer be turning out for Poland.
The decision appears to have come from a falling out with Probierz, with Lewandowski citing the manner in which he was informed he would be losing the captaincy as the main reason for his decision. Midfielder Piotr Zielinski has taken over from him, in a decision that was reportedly applauded, literally, by the rest of the national team.
Lewandowski gave an in-depth interview to WP SportoweFakty, as carried by MD, less than 24 hours later, explaining his decision.
“I received a surprise call from coach Michal Probierz informing me that he had decided to take away the armband. I wasn’t prepared for it; I was putting my children to bed. The conversation lasted a few minutes. I didn’t even have time to inform my family or talk to anyone about what had happened, because moments later a message appeared on the PZPN website. The way they informed me was a real shock.”
The 36-year-old accused Probierz of ‘betraying’ him, and was keen to press home that it was not the decision itself, but the method that had frustrated him.
“I haven’t been captain for a year or two. I’ve been wearing the armband for eleven years and with the national team for seventeen. I felt these matters should be handled differently, especially since the next training camp is still a long way off. Plus, we have an important game coming up, and everything was communicated by phone. It really shouldn’t have been this way. The coach betrayed my trust.”
“However, I want to emphasize: it’s not that I’m suddenly offended by the national team. Over the years, I’ve always given everything to the team. The national team has always been the most important thing to me. At the same time, I’m very hurt by what happened. It’s not even about the decision about the armband, but about how it was communicated to me.”
Part of the issue was reportedly that Lewandowski had shown a lack of commitment by dropping out of the call-up this week, stating that he was not in a mental or physical place for the games. Yet the veteran forward notes that Probierz was on board with the call.
“I made the decision not to attend the training camp together with the coach. Before the last league game against Athletic Bilbao, I called the coach. I wanted to talk to him and ask him what he thought about taking a break. He told me he supported it and was even thinking of calling me to talk about it.”
Hours later, Probierz explained his version of events during a press conference ahead of their clash with Finland.
“The timing and place of making such a decision are always very difficult. [It was] for the good of the team. There are no hard feelings or grudges. In football, you can’t be offended by this kind of thing,” he told Diario AS.
Robert Lewandowski has announced he won't be playing for the Poland national team as long as Michał Probierz is the head coach.
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) June 9, 2025
“Robert’s response was that the captain’s armband meant nothing and that it would change little for the team.”
Another of the issues that led to the decision was supposedly Lewandowski’s decision to rest against Malta in March. After the game he criticised the team and their play, something that did not go down well with either the staff or his fellow players. Lewandowski maintains that it was a perfectly normal conversation that he held in private with the coaching staff, and that there were no issues at that point. The Barcelona star also noted that he was ‘disappointed’ it had made it to the media.
