Lech Poznań

Lech Poznań
KKS Lech Poznań.png
Full name KKS Lech Poznań
Nickname(s) Kolejorz (The Railwayman)
Founded 19 March 1922
(as KS Lutnia Dębiec)
Ground Stadion Miejski,
Poznań, Poland
(Capacity: (45,830)
Chairman Poland Andrzej Kadziński
Coach Poland Jacek Zieliński
League Ekstraklasa
2009–10 Ekstraklasa 1st
Home colours
Away colours
Current season

Lech Poznań (Polish pronunciation: [ˈlɛx ˈpɔznaɲ]) is a Polish football club based in Poznań, Poland. The club is named after Lech, the legendary founder of Poland.

It originates from the established in 1922 Lutnia Poznań, which since then changed its name several times. From 1933 until 1994 club has been linked closely to Polish State Railways (PKP). As a result, its popular nickname is Kolejorz, which means The Railwayman in local slang. The club's debut in Polish top division took place in March 1948. The brightest era of Lech were the early 1980s and early 1990s. Lech has won the Polish league a total of six times, most recently in 2010.

Contents

Achievements

Domestic

UEFA participations

Lech Poznań has played a total of 50 games in the European Cups during the years 1978–2009 (as for September 2009) The most memorable games in the club's history were the clashes against FC Barcelona in the 1988/1989 season of Cup Winners' Cup second round. After both matches ended with 1–1 draw, Lech Poznań lost the penalty shoot-out with 4–5. FC Barcelona won the Cup Winners' Cup that season.

The club's biggest success in European Cup appearances was eliminating the Greek champion Panathinaikos during the 1990/1991 season First Round, with a 5–1 score on aggregate. In the next tie Lech was knocked out by Olympique de Marseille, but achieved a good result at home with a 3–2 win. Few years earlier, during the 1983/1984 season Lech made quite a big surprise with a 2–0 win at home against Spanish champions Athletic Bilbao.

During the UEFA Cup 2008–09 season, Lech made it to the group stage of the competition after knocking out higher seeded teams of Grasshopper-Club Zürich (notching its greatest margin of victory with a 6–0 win at home) and FK Austria Wien (scoring the decisive goal in the last minute of extra-time). In the group stage, Lech finished third-placed ahead of AS Nancy and Feyenoord to secure a place in the Third Round, where it was knocked out by the Italian side Udinese Calcio.

Lech Poznań in Europe

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Agg
1978/79 UEFA Cup 1R Germany MSV Duisburg 2–5 0–5 2–10
1982/83 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1R Iceland ÍBV Vestmannaeyjar 3–0 1–0 4–0
2R Scotland Aberdeen F.C. 0–1 0–2 0–3
1983/84 European Cup 1R Spain Athletic Bilbao 2–0 0–4 2–4
1984/85 European Cup 1R England Liverpool F.C. 0–1 0–4 0–5
1985/86 UEFA Cup 1R Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach 0–2 1–1 1–3
1988/89 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1R Albania KS Flamurtari Vlorë 1–0 3–2 4–2
2R Spain FC Barcelona 1–1 1–1 2–2 (4–5 pen)
1990/91 European Cup 1R Greece Panathinaikos 3–0 2–1 5–1
2R France Olympique de Marseille 3–2 1–6 4–8
1992/93 UEFA Champions League 1R Latvia Skonto FC 2–0 0–0 2–0
2R Sweden IFK Göteborg 0–3 0–1 0–4
1993/94 UEFA Champions League 1R Israel Beitar Jerusalem F.C. 3–0 4–2 7–2
2R Russia FC Spartak Moscow 1–5 1–2 2–7
1999/00 UEFA Cup Q Latvia FK Liepājas Metalurgs 3–1 2–3 5–4
1R Sweden IFK Göteborg 1–2 0–0 1–2
2004/05 UEFA Cup 2Q Russia FC Terek Grozny 0–1 0–1 0–2
2008/09 UEFA Cup 1Q Azerbaijan FK Khazar Lenkoran 4–1 1–0 5–1
2Q Switzerland Grasshopper Zürich 6–0 0–0 6–0
1R Austria FK Austria Wien 4–2 1–2 5–4
GR France AS Nancy 2–2
GR Russia PFC CSKA Moscow 1–2
GR Spain Deportivo La Coruña 1–1
GR Netherlands Feyenoord Rotterdam 1–0 3rd in Gr. H
3R Italy Udinese Calcio 2–2 1–2 3–4
2009/10 UEFA Europa League 3Q Norway Fredrikstad FK 1–2 6–1 7–3
4Q Belgium Club Brugge K.V. 1–0 0–1 1–1 (3–5 Pen)
2010/11 UEFA Champions League 2Q Azerbaijan Inter Baku 0–1 1–0 1–1 (9–8 Pen)
3Q Czech Republic Sparta Prague 0-1 0-1 0-2
2010/11 UEFA Europa League 4Q Ukraine Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 0-0 1-0 1-0

Records

Current squad

Lech Poznań 2010/2011.
As of August 4, 2010

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Poland GK Grzegorz Kasprzik
2 Poland DF Seweryn Gancarczyk
3 Serbia DF Ivan Đurđević
5 Colombia DF Manuel Arboleda
6 Poland MF Tomasz Bandrowski
7 Poland MF Jakub Wilk
8 Poland MF Jacek Kiełb
10 Belarus MF Sergey Krivets
11 Poland FW Bartosz Bereszyński
13 Slovakia MF Ján Zápotoka
14 Bosnia and Herzegovina MF Semir Štilić
15 Poland MF Kamil Drygas
16 Latvia FW Artjoms Rudņevs
17 Poland MF Sławomir Peszko
No. Position Player
18 Poland FW Artur Wichniarek
19 Poland DF Bartosz Bosacki Captain (football)
20 Democratic Republic of the Congo FW Joël Tshibamba
21 Serbia MF Dimitrije Injac
22 Poland DF Grzegorz Wojtkowiak
23 Poland DF Marcin Kikut
24 Poland FW Krzysztof Chrapek
25 Panama DF Luis Henríquez
26 Poland FW Tomasz Mikołajczak
27 Poland GK Krzysztof Kotorowski
30 Bosnia and Herzegovina GK Jasmin Burić
31 Poland GK Gerard Bieszczad
32 Poland MF Mateusz Możdżeń
35 Poland DF Marcin Kamiński

Coaching staff

Notable players

Fans

Lech Poznań is considered to have the strongest fan support in Poland due to club's highest average attendance in Ekstraklasa and the atmosphere during the games.

For over a decade Lech supporters have a fellowship with fans from Arka Gdynia and Cracovia Kraków (the popular watchword: 'Miłość, Wiara, Walka – Lech Cracovia Arka' i.e. 'Love, Faith, Fight – Lech, Cracovia, Arka'). Close friendship links Lech fans also with KSZO Ostrowiec supporters (since 1992).

Relations with local rival Warta Poznań are neutral as the clubs have almost always played in different leagues.

See also

External links