Robert Lewandowski scored a couple of goals tonight as Poland went to the home of the formerly respectable Romania and won 3-0. However, the game will be principally remembered for the dangerous incident early in the second half which saw Poland's 'marquee' player hit the turf, burying his face in his hands.
At the end of the first half, the game was delayed for a minute when the Romanian fans started tossing flares and firecrackers onto the pitch.
And then early in the second half, a dramatic and dangerous moment, as a firework exploded near his feet. He emerged unhurt from the incident.
As it happens, and beyond the involvement of fireworks exploding near players, this bears no relationship to the Lewandowski incident, the most dramatic incident involving a firework since Chile attempted to cheat their way into the World Cup in 1990. A Brazilian girl threw a firework onto the pitch and Chilean goalkeeper Roberto Rojas promptly hit the deck.
Video evidence clearly revealed that he had not been hit and had inflicted his head injury with a razor blade hidden in his glove. Chile were banned from competing in the 1994 World Cup and Rojas, the manager and the team doctor were banned for life.
