Both teams lost their opening matches
Falcao: "It'll be like a final"

Both Poland and Colombia started the 2018 FIFA World Cup™ with painful defeats, losing to Senegal and Japan respectively in Group H. Now they meet for the first time ever at a global showpiece and go into their Matchday 11 clash in Kazan with their backs to the walls.

Poland will be particularly keen to stamp out the individual errors that made life hard for themselves in their opening game, and coach Adam Nawalka is expected to make a couple of changes to his starting line-up in order to steer his charges back on track. They will be looking to get Robert Lewandowski on the scoresheet, as Poland have not won since UEFA EURO 2016 when the forward has failed to find the target.

For Colombia, James Rodriguez is likely to return to the side after the Bayern Munich star was only brought off the substitutes' bench in the first game against Japan. It will be Los Cafeteros' 20th World Cup fixture and they will be hoping to keep all 11 players on the pitch this time after Carlos Sanchez picked up the second-fastest red card in World Cup history when he was sent off in the third minute against Japan.

Did you know?
Poland coach Nawalka earned his 34th and final cap for the Bialo-czerwoni (The White and Reds) against Colombia. It was the first-ever meeting between the sides, and one Poland won 4-1.