"165 A-match" Europe's best striker finally takes off his national team uniform... "Goodbye now". Alluding to a surprise breakup

*This content was translated by AI.

Polish soccer living legend Robert Lewandowski (38, FC Barcelona) hinted at retiring from the national team. The decision was made after failing to advance to the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals in North Korea and China.

Lewandowski played the full season in the 90th minute against Sweden in the European regional playoff pass B final of the North-China World Cup at Strawberry Arena in Solna, Sweden on the 1st (Korea time). However, just before the end of the match, Poland lost the game 2-3 by allowing Victor Jockeres (Arnall) to score the winning goal and missed the ticket to the finals.

The match drew attention as a firepower match between Poland's veteran striker Lewandowski and Swedish ace Jockeres. In the 43rd minute of the second half, when the two teams were locked in a tight 2-2 tie and extra time was in the air, Jockeres scored a dramatic winning goal to lead Sweden to the finals.

Sweden, led by head coach Graham Potter, joined the playoffs based on their Nations League performance and showed their potential to advance to the finals. Sweden will compete in Group F with the Netherlands, Japan and Tunisia in the finals. "Words cannot express how I feel about confirming my qualification for the World Cup at home," said Joquerez, who led the victory, in an interview after the game. "It was a possible result because I believed until the end."

On the other hand, Lewandowski's challenge, which actually dreamed of the last World Cup stage, ended in tragedy. After the game, Lewandowski posted a significant post on his personal social networking service (SNS), indicating his retirement. He expressed his intention to put down the national team uniform by inserting "Time to Say Goodbye" as the background music along with a photo of the captain's armband in hand.

Lewandowski, who chose to stay after retirement after considering his retirement shortly after the end of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, is expected to finish his national team journey by leaving behind Poland's record of 165 A-match appearances.

Meanwhile, Sweden, which beat Lewandowski, will enter the finals starting with the first group match against the Netherlands in June, with the main players heading to the finals one after another through the playoffs.

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*This content was translated by AI.