Szczęsny and Poland stun World Champions Germany!

Poland beat Germany in a competitive match for the first time in their history (19 matches) and Germany lost a European qualifying game for the first time since 2007 (33 matches). Poland won the game 2-0 after a fantastic defensive performance to send the Polish fans home happy. Arsenal goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczęsny, was fantastic and made a number of great saves to stop the German attack.Germany had 29 shots in total, but when the Germans hit the target, they found Szczęsny in great form and he made fine stops from Bellarabi, Muller and Chelsea's Andre Schurrle. The only time he was beaten was after a great shot from Szczęsny's Arsenal teammate, Lukas Podolski, but the crossbar came to Poland's rescue.

"All the players left their hearts on the pitch today."   Wojciech Szczęsny after the Poland v Germany match.

What do we know about Szczęsny?

Wojciech Szczęsny moved to Arsenal from Poland in 2006. He was only 16. He waited three years to make his first-team debut, against West Bromwich Albion. In the match, he did what all goalkeepers want: he kept a clean sheet. To give Szczęsny regular first-team football, Arsenal loaned him to third-level Brentford, but manager Arsène Wenger said: "I really believe that one day he will be Arsenal's number one. He has all the qualities you want from a goalkeeper." He made his Premier League debut in December 2010 against Manchester United.

Are there any other goalkeepers in the Szczęsny family?

Szczęsny comes from a family of goalkeepers.

• Maciej Szczęsny is Wojciech's father. He played most of his club football for Legia Warsaw in Poland as a goalkeeper. Maciej is the only player to win a Polish league title for four different clubs: Legia, Widzew Łódź, Polonia Warsaw and Wisła Kraków. He now works as a TV commentator.
• Jan Szczęsny is Wojciech's older brother. He plays in goal for PKS Radość Warsaw, a team in the Polish lower divisions.

Maciej played seven times for the Polish national team, a record that Wojciech has already beaten. Wojciech made his debut for Poland in November 2009 in a friendly match against Canada.

What competition does Szczęsny have at Arsenal?

During the 2012-13 season, Szczęsny was replaced in goal by another Polish goalkeeper, Łukasz Fabiański. He only returned when Fabiański was injured. But Szczęsny has no problem with competition, and Fabianski has now left to play for Swansea City. But, Szczęsny now has competition from David Ospina, who impressed at Brazil 2014 for Costa Rica, who reached the quarter-finals. Ospina hasn't played in the Premier League yet, but after Szczęsny got a red card in a recent Champions League match, Ospina will get a chance to impress Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger.

Which famous goalkeepers have Arsenal had in the past?

Arsenal have had some excellent goalkeepers in the past. Some of them include:

• Bob Wilson (1963-74), later a BBC TV presenter. He was part of the team that won the league title and FA Cup in 1971.
• Pat Jennings (1977-85) arrived at Arsenal from North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. He became the first player in English football to make 1,000 appearances.
• David Seaman (1990-2003) helped Arsenal to win three league titles and four FA Cups. He was England’s number one during the 1990s.

Szczęsny is only 24 years old, which is very young for a goalkeeper. He is young enough to continue to improve and become an Arsenal legend, too.

What do we know about Arsenal?

Arsenal are one of the most successful clubs in England. They have won the Premier League title three times in the last 20 years and have not been outside the top four since the 1995-96 season. They have been English champions a total of 13 times, the first in 1931. The only clubs to win more league titles than Arsenal are Manchester United (20) and Liverpool (18). Arsenal are the most successful club in London; Chelsea have four titles and Tottenham two. In 2013, Arsenal were the fourth most valuable football club in the world after Real Madrid, Manchester United and Barcelona.

Watch an interview with Szczęsny talking about Poland's performance against Germany.

What did you understand?

How much did you understand?

Put the sentences in order

Activity 2: In this activity, think about Wojciech Szczęsny's career. Can you put the events in the correct order?

Did you know.......?

• Wojciech Szczęsny is pronounced / vɔɪtek ʃəʃezni: / (Yes, it is difficult!)
• Poland have been in seven World Cups and have finished in third place on two occasions (1974 and 1982).
• Arsenal’s previous names were Dial Square, Royal Arsenal and Woolwich Arsenal.
• Arsenal’s nickname is ‘The Gunners’ because of its origins in a weapons factory.
• Artur Boruc (Southampton) and Lukasz Fabianski (Swansea City) are 2 other Polish goalkeepers in the Premier League.