Jan Bednarek thriving at Porto as Southampton struggle | OneFootball

Jan Bednarek is thriving at Porto, emerging as a standout in defence while Southampton endure a difficult season.

According to Sainstmarching.com, the centre-back joined Southampton from Lech Poznan in 2017 and made 254 appearances, scoring 11 goals with four assists. He had a loan spell at Aston Villa that brought only four outings. He later helped the Saints win promotion via the 2024 Championship playoffs, then left after relegation the following season.

At Porto he has re-established himself as a key figure, earning the Portuguese league’s defender of the month award for the last four months. Porto sit top of Liga Portugal, unbeaten with 16 wins and one draw from 17 games. Head coach Francesco Farioli is viewed as one of the brightest emerging coaches.

Porto should win the division this season, holding a seven-point lead over Sporting CP. It would be Bednarek’s first league title since the Ekstraklasa with Poznan in 2015. They are also doing fairly well in the Europa League, where they are currently eighth.

Back in England, Southampton are 15th in the Championship, eight points off the playoffs and nine above the drop zone. Tonda Eckert’s team are winless in six league matches and lost 4-0 to Middlesbrough last time out.

The back line features the highly rated Taylor Harwood-Bellis, yet others have underperformed this season. Bednarek is 29 and will be enjoying his football more in Portugal than with a mid-table Championship side.

He remains a Poland international with 72 caps and one goal, scored against Japan at the 2018 World Cup. Poland still have a chance to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, facing Albania in the play-off semi-finals in March. They would then meet the winner of Ukraine against Sweden for a place at a tournament being staged in the United States, Mexico and Canada later this year.

Source: Sainstmarching.com