This duo is the future of the Polish national team. "We've got some beautiful gems."

Since 2006, when they finished runner-up in the World Championship, the Polish national volleyball team has confidently marched from success to success. Their most recent achievements include Olympic silverware (2024), European Championship (2023), and consistent medals in consecutive Nations League seasons. The last two were bronze (2024) and gold (2023) in the VNL – making Poland the most successful team in the competition's history.

It's important, however, to look not only to the past or the here and now, but also to the future. The next generation of volleyball players can bring new successes. Coach Nikola Grbić began building a new Olympic cycle this season, with an eye on what will happen at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

The two biggest discoveries for the national team? Libero Maksymilian Granieczny and center Jakub Nowak. Nowak, born in 2005, has been playing for JSW Jastrzębski Węgiel since the new season. Nowak shares the same birth year (2005) – and the center will be playing at Norwid Częstochowa.

We asked Piotr Gruszka , a legend of the Polish national team and current expert and commentator for Polsat Sport, about these two. Specifically, which of the two, Granieczny and Nowak, is endowed with greater talent.

"Great, truly great talents. I think that, based on observations in the PlusLiga, in many matches, I would bet on Maks. Granieczny has things you simply have and can't train. He has a lot of natural talent […] Maks is truly phenomenal. We have two great talents, each with something extraordinary, natural about them. Kuba Nowak has the movement and the hand positioning when blocking. It all works as it should. Now he can only rise higher. He'll probably master things like changing directions, plus he'll gain experience on the court, which he'll enhance in the national team and soon in the PlusLiga. Maks Granieczny, on the other hand, comes on the court and simply stands where the ball needs to be. That's what he has. Very often, a libero's work in defense isn't just a matter of tactics, where we open up a straight line for someone and they'll get it there. Often, it's "reading" the opponent's intentions, which characterizes the greatest liberos. They had it, and Granieczny has it too. And each subsequent season will be a confirmation and maturation of Maks in this position – admitted Gruszka in an interview for "Wprost".

Interestingly, Nowak has secured a spot in the starting lineup of the senior national team in the 2025 season. He forms a duo with the team's current captain, Jakub Kochanowski.

"We've had some beautiful volleyball gems, Kuba Nowak and Maks Granieczny. And I have absolutely no objection to them playing for the national team. It's not like there's some magical age at which you can start playing for the national team. And before that, it was 'young man, wait, because you have to wait.' Nothing like that. If someone has something extraordinary, such talent, then simply regardless of age, with quality and talent, they can play and support the senior Polish national team," Gruszka concluded, appreciating the scale of both players' talent.

It seems, then, that Polish men's volleyball can rest easy. More important names offer hope that the system created years ago, just when teams like Gruszka were achieving success, will continue to function well. And talents like Nowak and Granieczny only confirm this.

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