Radomiak and Widzew Lodz set for cautious Ekstraklasa opener

The new Polish Ekstraklasa season gets under way late on Friday night, with Radomiak hosting Widzew Lodz in the opening match. The home side have looked poor in pre-season, while the newly promoted visitors appear short on top-flight quality, so a draw would be an acceptable outcome for both teams.

Radomiak finished 10th in the Polish top flight last season, their best placing in the past three years, which should be acceptable to their supporters. They will naturally want to start the new campaign on the right foot, but their pre-season preparations have been far from convincing, with just one win and five defeats from six friendlies. They also conceded as many as 15 goals in that spell, highlighting an urgent need to improve defensively.

The one positive for Radomiak is that they scored in every one of those friendlies. Forward R. Alves found the net more than once and appears to be in good shape, and he will look to help Radomiak avoid defeat at home.

Widzew Lodz came through the promotion play-offs the hard way last season to secure a place in the Ekstraklasa. In fact, this is the first promotion to the Polish top division in the club's history. Looking back five years, they were still playing in Poland's sixth tier, so their recent rise has been remarkable.

Coincidentally, Widzew Lodz have also had an underwhelming pre-season, recording one win and two defeats in three friendlies, with a goals-for and goals-against tally of 3-3. There has been little to highlight at either end of the pitch. For Widzew Lodz, avoiding defeat in this round would already mark a milestone in club history, and the whole squad will be determined to take home a point.