DOHA – Robert Lewandowski refused to confirm if he had played his last game at the World Cup after Poland were knocked out of the tournament in Qatar following their 3-1 last-16 defeat by title holders France on Sunday.

The Barcelona striker scored a late consolation from the penalty spot for the Poles, who were outclassed by the fearsome French attack in Doha.

He will be almost 38 by the time the next World Cup comes around in North America in 2026 but he suggested that issues beyond his physical condition were more likely to see him end his international career.

“Physically, I’m not afraid of this but we have so many different things outside of football, whether your happiness is still there and what’s going on around, so it’s tough to say now,” said the Poland captain.

“From the sporting side, I’m not afraid but there are different things that altogether can decide whether it will be the last one or not.”

The former Bayern Munich star has enjoyed a prolific career for club and country but had never scored a World Cup goal until he netted in Poland’s group-stage win over Saudi Arabia – he even missed a penalty in their opening draw with Mexico.

Despite Poland’s exit, he insisted that it had been a successful tournament after they made it out of the group stage at the World Cup for the first time since 1986.

“We wanted to still be in the World Cup but, in the end, we achieved our goal,” he said. “We wanted to play after the group stage. If you play against the world champions, it’s always tough.”

Poland coach Czeslaw Michniewicz agreed but rued how his men had missed a handful of chances.

“If we’d scored first, it (reaching the quarter-finals) could have been possible,” said Michniewicz, whose contract was due to expire after Poland’s campaign.

“We knew that we could still recover, we could attack and score and we brought on another forward... that third goal finished this match. (Kylian) Mbappe scored fantastically and Wojciech (Szczesny) had a fantastic tournament but even he wasn’t able to save us today.

“We have some limitations. But after weeks and months, our perspective will change. We will proudly be able to say we achieved what Poland wasn’t able to for 36 years.”

In Lewandowski, Poland had one of the most feared strikers spearheading their attack but he received little support from his teammates during their campaign, and again cut a lonely and frustrated figure up front against France.

Michniewicz admitted that not playing for one of the leading international sides made it harder for Lewandowski to shine at the very highest level.

“Expectations for the top players like Mbappe and (Lionel) Messi are always huge and his situation is difficult because the style of play of Portugal or France is more beneficial to the forwards,” he said.

“We have a different style. We have some limitations and need to cover the gap in levels when we play against a team with Messi or Mbappe.

“He is in a difficult situation but it doesn’t mean he is not going to score for the national team. We were not playing against Andorra – if we were, he might have scored five.”

He added that he believed Lewandowski was capable of leading Poland into future tournaments, with the next target being Euro 2024 in Germany.

“He is the captain of the national team and will decide about his future himself but, the way he is playing, I think he can be the captain for years to come.” AFP, REUTERS