 Michniewicz withLegia Warszawa in 2021 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Czesław Michniewicz[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1970-02-12)12 February 1970 (age 55) | ||
| Place of birth | Byarozawka, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1978–1985 | Ossa Biskupiec Pomorski | ||
| 1985–1993 | Bałtyk Gdynia | ||
| 1993–1996 | Polonia Gdańsk | ||
| 1996–2000 | Amica Wronki | 9 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2003–2006 | Lech Poznań | ||
| 2006–2007 | Zagłębie Lubin | ||
| 2008–2009 | Arka Gdynia | ||
| 2010–2011 | Widzew Łódź | ||
| 2011 | Jagiellonia Białystok | ||
| 2012 | Polonia Warsaw | ||
| 2013 | Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała | ||
| 2015–2016 | Pogoń Szczecin | ||
| 2016–2017 | Bruk-Bet Termalica Nieciecza | ||
| 2017–2020 | Poland U21 | ||
| 2020–2021 | Legia Warsaw | ||
| 2022 | Poland | ||
| 2023 | Abha | ||
| 2024 | AS FAR | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Czesław Michniewicz (Polish pronunciation:[ˈt͡ʂɛswafmixˈɲɛvit͡ʂ];[citation needed] born 12 February 1970) is a Polish professionalfootball manager and formerplayer who most recently managedBotola Pro sideAS FAR. He managed thePoland national team in 2022.
In September 2003, Michniewicz was appointed as the manager ofLech Poznań. He led the side to the 2003–04Polish Cup andPolish Super Cup titles. He left the club in June 2006. In October 2006, he was appointed manager ofEkstraklasa sideZagłębie Lubin, leading the club to the2006–07 league title. In October 2007, he was relieved of his duties. From 8 July 2008 to 12 April 2009 he managedArka Gdynia in the Ekstraklasa. From 15 November 2010 until 30 June 2011, he managedWidzew Łódź.[2] On 22 July 2011, he was appointed as the manager ofJagiellonia Białystok, but left the position on 22 December 2011 by mutual consent. On 28 March 2012, Michniewicz was named as the new coach ofPolonia Warsaw, which he led until 8 May 2012.[3]
From 22 March to 22 October 2013, he managedPodbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała. After a year and a half pause, he was hired as the coach ofPogoń Szczecin. Michniewicz's side finished the league at sixth place in the2015–16 season. Despite the best result in years, his contract was not renewed and he left the club on 30 June 2016. From 1 July 2016 to 22 March 2017, he was in charge ofBruk-Bet Termalica Nieciecza in Ekstraklasa.
On 7 July 2017, he was appointed as the coach of thePoland under-21 national team. After defeatingPortugal in the play-offs, Poland under his leadership qualified for the first time since 1994 for the final tournament of the2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. On 15 October 2020, he was replaced byMaciej Stolarczyk.[4]
On 21 September 2020, he was appointed as the coach ofLegia Warsaw.[5] In his debut Legia won 2–0 overFC Drita at the2020–21 UEFA Europa League qualifiers. On 18 October 2020, he made hisEkstraklasa debut, as Legia won 2–1 overZagłębie Lubin.[6] On 11 December 2020, he was namedEkstraklasa's Coach of the Month after Legia's successful run in November.[7] He was awarded the same distinction for March 2021, as his team completed the campaign in the above-mentioned month without any defeat.[8] On 28 April 2021, Michniewicz wonhis second Polish Championship after 0–0 draw betweenJagiellonia Białystok andRaków Częstochowa (as the latter team had already lost mathematical chances of catching up with Legia), with three games to spare.[9]
On 26 August 2021, Legia led by Michniewicz defeatedSK Slavia Prague, and for the first time in five years qualified for the group stages of a European cup.[10] They would faceLeicester City,Napoli andSpartak Moscow in theUEFA Europa League group stage.[11]
Although Legia led theirgroup after wins againstSpartak Moscow andLeicester City,[12] they struggled in the league. After four consecutive defeats, managing nine points in ten fixtures and sitting 15th in the table,[13] Michniewicz was dismissed on 25 October 2021.[14]
On 31 January 2022, Michniewicz was named as the new manager ofPoland, signing a deal until 31 December 2022 with an extension option,[15] following the previous managerPaulo Sousa's decision to joinFlamengo three months before Poland's first2022 FIFA World Cup qualification play-offs game.[16] He was scheduled to make his debut againstRussia inMoscow,[17] prior to the disqualification of Russia.[18] On 24 March, Poland played their first match under Michniewicz, a 1–1 draw in a friendly againstScotland.[19]
On 29 March 2022, Michniewicz led Poland to a 2–0 victory overSweden in theWorld Cup qualification play-off final.[20] On 30 November 2022, Poland advanced to the knockout stage of the2022 FIFA World Cup for the first time since1986 under the lead of Michniewicz.[21]
On 22 December 2022, following criticism of the national team's defensive tactics and style of play under Michniewicz by the media,[22] a turmoil regarding bonuses for national team players and staff,[23] Michniewicz blocking several journalists on Twitter before deleting his account,[24] and reportedly shouldering part of the blame for the media fallout on team manager Jakub Kwiatkowski,[25] it was announced Michniewicz's contract would not be extended and he was to leave his post on 31 December 2022.[26]
On 12 June 2023, Michniewicz was announced as the new manager of Saudi clubAbha.[27] Following a good start to his stint, Abha suffered four straight league defeats in September, which led to Michniewicz's dismissal on 1 October 2023.[28]
On 13 July 2024, Michniewicz became the head coach of Moroccan sideAS FAR.[29] On 22 September that year, he led the club to successfully qualify for the2024–25 CAF Champions League, marking their return to the competition after 17 years of absence.[30] On 15 October, with a record of four wins, three draws and two losses across all competitions, Michniewicz and AS FAR agreed to mutually part ways.[31]
Michniewicz was born inByarozawka, then in theByelorussian SSR,Soviet Union (present-dayBelarus), while his mother was visiting her family; but grew up inBiskupiec, Poland.[32] On 20 June 1998, he married Grażyna Rzewuska, with whom he has two sons: Mateusz (born 22 January 2001) and Jakub (born 13 August 2003).[33]
| Team | Nation | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Lech Poznań |  | 15 September 2003 | 17 May 2006 | 108 | 45 | 27 | 36 | 041.67 |
| Zagłębie Lubin | | 3 October 2006 | 22 October 2007 | 37 | 21 | 7 | 9 | 056.76 |
| Arka Gdynia | | 8 July 2008 | 12 April 2009 | 33 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 036.36 |
| Widzew Łódź | | 15 November 2010 | 22 June 2011 | 17 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 047.06 |
| Jagiellonia Białystok | | 22 July 2011 | 22 November 2011 | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 033.33 |
| Polonia Warsaw | | 28 March 2012 | 9 May 2012 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 028.57 |
| Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała | | 22 March 2013 | 22 October 2013 | 24 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 029.17 |
| Pogoń Szczecin | | 9 April 2015 | 17 May 2016 | 49 | 15 | 18 | 16 | 030.61 |
| Bruk-Bet Termalica Nieciecza | | 6 June 2016 | 22 March 2017 | 27 | 10 | 6 | 11 | 037.04 |
| Poland U21 | | 7 July 2017 | 14 October 2020 | 27 | 14 | 7 | 6 | 051.85 |
| Legia Warsaw | | 21 September 2020 | 25 October 2021 | 55 | 31 | 11 | 13 | 056.36 |
| Poland | | 31 January 2022 | 31 December 2022 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 038.46 |
| Abha |  | 12 June 2023 | 1 October 2023 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 033.33 |
| AS FAR |  | 13 July 2024 | 15 October 2024 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 044.44 |
| Total | 434 | 183 | 109 | 142 | 042.17 | |||
Amica Wronki
Lech Poznań
Zagłebie Lubin
Legia Warsaw
Individual
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