Poland's preparations for the 2022 World Cup come to a conclusion when Chile visit the Stadion Wojska Polskiego in Warsaw for an international friendly on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the visitors will not be present at the Qatar tournament after failing to make it out of the ever-competitive South American qualifying.
Match preview
© Reuters
Pipping England to top spot in their World Cup qualification group was always expected to be a bridge too far for Poland, who were forced to go down the playoff route to seal their place in the winter tournament, beating Sweden 2-0 in the final after their proposed showdown with Russia was cancelled.
Czeslaw Michniewicz's men have recent when it comes to doing battle with the big boys, having taken on Belgium, the Netherlands and Wales in the Nations League earlier this year, and they were faced with the threat of relegation before beating the Dragons 2-0 on the final matchday.
Back-to-back wins over Wales saved Poland's bacon in League A, but the White and Red otherwise took just one point from their four meetings with Belgium and the Netherlands, and their World Cup group is not a welcoming one by any stretch.
Indeed, Argentina, Saudi Arabia and Mexico are waiting for Poland in Group C, and Michniewicz's side will take on the latter in their opening showdown on November 22 as they aim to better their group-stage finish from the 2018 World Cup.
Not since 1986 have the White and Red made it as far as the last 16, and their Euro 2020 campaign also ended in the groups, so the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Piotr Zielinski are under immense pressure to showcase their excellence and spark a catalyst for improved fortunes.
© Reuters
In contrast, the Chile crop will be watching the World Cup from home for the second successive time this year, having failed to qualify for the 2018 edition and failing to stamp their authority on the South American landscape this time around too.
La Roja took just 19 points from their 18 matches in CONMEBOL qualifying to finish in a disappointing seventh place in the 10-team section, with four defeats to Ecuador, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay in their final five games proving costly.
Eduardo Berizzo was the man hired to try to turn Chile's fortunes around in May, but his opening four games were nothing short of disastrous, with Chile losing to South Korea, Ghana, Tunisia and Morocco without scoring a single goal.
Chile finally managed to end their abysmal six-game winless and scoreless run by drawing 2-2 with World Cup hosts Qatar in September, and they will also test their mettle against Slovakia four days after taking on Poland, but 2022 will be firmly remembered as a year to forget for La Roja.
Poland also warmed up for the 2018 World Cup with a summer friendly against Chile, which finished 2-2 as Lewandowski and Zielinski found the back of the net in the first-ever meeting between the two nations.
Team News
© Reuters
Poland have already been forced into an injury-related alteration for their World Cup group, as goalkeeper Bartlomiej Dragowski sustained a sickening ankle fracture while playing for Spezia in the weekend's Serie A clash with Hellas Verona.
Copenhagen's Champions League star Kamil Grabara has been called up to replace Dragowski as he aims to build on the solitary appearance he has for his country, but Wojciech Szczesny will certainly be Poland's number one in Qatar.
It remains to be seen if Michniewicz will opt to risk 76-goal captain Lewandowski from the first whistle on Wednesday, with deputies Arkadiusz Milik and Krzysztof Piatek both aiming to nail down a role as the Barcelona man's strike partner.
Meanwhile, the final Chile squad of the year is unsurprisingly headlined by Gary Medel and Alexis Sanchez, two men who share top spot in the appearance charts with 150 caps apiece, and the duo should both line up from the off here.
Sanchez needs just one more strike to hit the 50-goal mark for the national team and could find himself partnered up top by Angelo Henriquez after Blackburn Rovers revoked their decision to allow Ben Brereton Diaz to join up with the national team.
Sanchez and Medel's fellow veterans Claudio Bravo and Arturo Vidal are also still going strong for Chile and should be involved here, but Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Charles Aranguiz is out due to injury.
Poland possible starting lineup:
Szczesny; Bereszynski, Bednarek, Glik; Cash, Krychowiak, Zielinski, Zurkowski, Zalewski; Piatek, Milik
Chile possible starting lineup:
Bravo; Medel, Maripan, Sierralta; Mehssatou, Nunez, Pavez, Vidal, Suazo; Sanchez, Henriquez
We say: Poland 3-1 Chile
As much as Poland will want to enter the World Cup on a high, Michniewicz could do without losing some key names to injury, and the hosting manager will certainly rotate heavily during the match.
With Sanchez in strong form at club level, Chile will hope to consign their recent scoreless streak to history, but Berizzo's leaky crop are still unlikely to experience much joy in Warsaw.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
England
Iran
USA
Wales
