Boniek bowled over by Poland fans

Proud record
The 52-year-old played 80 times for his country, helping them take third place at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, and won the European Champion Clubs' Cup, UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup with Juventus. In Austria and Switzerland as an analyst for a Polish TV station, Boniek was disappointed with Poland's 2-0 loss to Germany and 1-1 draw with Austria, but the Biało-czerwoni fans have certainly won him over.

'Wonderful attitude'
"Sadly the Polish team hasn't stood out," the veteran of three World Cups told euro2008.com. "On the other hand, our fans really stand out. They're great, have a wonderful attitude, are great supporters and they also clap for the national anthems of our opponents. I believe that when it comes to supporters, we're in the top four. From the footbaling viewpoint, we rank a bit lower." Despite Boniek's criticism, Poland still have a chance of making the last eight, but Leo Beenhakker's side must defeat Group D winners Croatia by at least two goals on Monday and hope Austria beat Germany by a smaller margin. "Now our chances not only depend on us but on others as well," Boniek said.  

Missing out
Still, this Poland squad have achieved something neither Boniek nor any of their predecessors did – playing in a UEFA European Championship finals. "Well, we never played at the European Championship for a number of reasons," explained Boniek. "At first only four teams qualified, then eight - it was much harder to qualify for the European Championship. Besides that we were a communist country, so we were more interested in the Olympic Games. It's a pity, because who wouldn't want to play in such a tournament as we are witnessing today. It's just great."

High standard
He added: "I'm surprised by the standard of UEFA EURO 2008™. The matches are very good and very interesting. I have seen a few teams like the Netherlands and Portugal who really played well - the same goes for Spain. Turkey played a very good match against the Swiss. I was afraid at the start of the tournament that matches wouldn't be of a very high level but there's no sign of that. It will be a difficult and hard tournament. Hard, because teams are so well prepared physically. I like it here. I like the way it's organised."

Old friends
Boniek has also been using UEFA EURO 2008™ to catch up with old friends, like his former Juventus team-mate, UEFA President Michel Platini. "I had some very pleasant encounters," Boniek said. "I met Herbert Prohaska, Gordon Strachan and a couple of colleagues from Italy. I spoke with Michel Platini, of course. Apart from sport, which is most important, and rivalry, these UEFA European Championships are an opportunity to see old friends and have a chat."