Arsenal 25yo helps national team to win with manager under fire | OneFootball

Jakub Kiwior made a start in Poland’s win over Lithuania on Friday, helping his team to keep a clean sheet amid mounting pressure on his team’s manager.

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Jakub Kiwior has struggled for minutes at Arsenal this season, particularly since the turn of the year. Despite being fit to make every single one of Mikel Arteta’s Premier League squads in 2025, Kiwior has remained on the bench on each occasion, not even playing a minute as a substitute.

Kiwior also remained on the bench for the entirety of Arsenal’s FA Cup exit to Manchester United, and both legs of the League Cup semi-final against Newcastle United.

The defender’s sole source of club minutes has been the Champions League, and even then he’s been a little lucky.

Arsenal’s strong position in the League Phase allowed Arteta to rotate for the final games against GNK Dinamo and Girona, and their 7-1 win over PSV (without Kiwior) meant it was safe to rest William Saliba in the home leg. To sum up, Kiwior has made three club appearances this year.

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Yet with the national team, Kiwior remains a regular starter. Aside from one blip for a couple of games in September and October, the 25-year-old has started almost every Poland match for the last three years.

The defender made his fourth consecutive start against Lithuania on Friday, and he helped Poland to a 1-0 win. Sofascore listed Kiwior as their Player of the Match with an 8.0 rating, thanks largely to the fact he won 10 of his 12 individual duels.

Kiwior also made four tackles, blocked two shots, and completed 86% of his passes. Thanks to Poland’s defensive efforts keeping Lithuania out, Robert Lewandowski was able to pop up with a trademark winner in the 81st minute.

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Yet it’s not all good news for the national team. Despite the win, manager Michal Probierz is under a lot of pressure for his side’s performances, with some fans calling for his resignation.

Given he’s made 16 starts in 18 games under Probierz, Kiwior will probably hope the manager sticks around. If the defender can’t get minutes with Arsenal right now, at least they’re available to him over the international breaks.