After failing to impress in his last two loan spells, Brighton & Hove Albion allowed Michał Karbownik to go out on loan to Fortuna Düsseldorf in the summer.
Operating mainly as a left-back, the Poland international has starred for the second division German club, so much so that there have been talks of making his stay there permanent.
The Brighton owned player has also been used in the middle of the pitch. Former Poland international Artur Wichniarek felt the 21-year-old’s versatility and fine displays for Fortuna Düsseldorf would be useful for the national team at the 2022 World Cup.
On Thursday, Poland manager Czesław Michniewicz announced his squad for the upcoming FIFA tournament and the Seagulls man was not included in the final list.
“Initially, I was thinking about Karbownik, because he can give us an option on the left and in the middle. But he will not replace Bielik or Krychowiak if they suffered an injury. When I saw Damian Szymański in the match against AEK, I thought that one of the goalkeepers should be replaced with him,” the national team manager said, relayed by Interia Sport.
Over at Weszlo, they state Karbownik was supposed to be the ‘last minute passenger’ to Qatar, after he managed to impress at Fortuna Düsseldorf. His displays, in the end, ‘was not enough’ to please the Poland manager.
“I decided that Damian Szymański would be useful, I went especially to Greece. We watched Kuba Piotrowski, Kacper Kozłowski, Michał Karbownik. In my opinion, Damian Szymański is in top shape,” Weszlo quoted Michniewicz as saying.
The Brighton fullback will be disappointed to not make it to the Poland squad for the 2022 World Cup.
