MACIEJ ZURAWSKI - POLAND

Date of birth: Sept. 12, 1976
Birthplace: Poznan, Poland
Club: Celtic (Scotland)
Position: Striker
International debut: November 1998 vs. Slovakia

Poland's Maciej Zurawski is nicknamed "Magic" for good reason.

The Polish striker is an explosive goal scorer who combines speed and strength in a dangerous overall package. Although technically gifted, his greatest assets are his ability to score with both feet and his deadly instincts inside the penalty area.

He and teammate Tomas Frankowski pack a dynamic 1-2 scoring punch — they combined for 14 goals in the qualifying round — and opposing defenders will have their hands full trying to contain them in Germany.

After years of toiling in obscurity in Poland, Zurawski emerged as a star for Celtic this past year, helping the Glasgow-based team win the Scottish league title and the Scottish League Cup in his first season with the famous club.

Zurawski began his career in 1994 with Polish side Warta Poznan. After three-and-a-half uneventful years, he moved on to bigger and better things with cross-town rival Lech Poznan. Zurawski scored 19 goals during his time with Lech, forming a dangerous partnership with fellow forward Piotr Reiss.

Again, Zurawski was on the move in 1999 and he joined Wisla Krakow, one of the biggest and most successful clubs in the Polish league, after scoring 11goals in 30 games in his last season for Lech.

After a mediocre debut campaign with Krakow, Zurawski scored eight goals during his second season and helped the club win the Polish league title and the Polish Cup in 2001. He followed that up by finishing as top scorer in the Polish league with 21 goals in 2002 and won another Polish Cup.

Three more 20-plus goal seasons (22, 20 and 24) and three more Polish league titles followed for Zurawski. At the same time he became a staple of the national team, helping Poland qualify for the 2002 World Cup. That same year he was voted Polish player of the year.

As his stature grew in the Polish league, so did his importance for the national team: Zurawski scored seven goals in the qualifying round to help Poland earn a berth at the 2006 World Cup.

Pundits said it was only a matter of time before he would be offered a chance to leave Wisla and join a more glamorous club. In the summer of 2005, Scottish powerhouse Celtic came calling and spent 3.1 million euros ($4.4 million Cdn) to procure his services. It was money well spent.

Although he struggled with some injuries in the season, he became an instant favourite with the fans in Glasgow by scoring 16 goals and helping the club win its first league title in two years.

After being held scoreless in three World Cup games in 2002, Zurawski looks a sure bet to break out of his slump this time around in Germany.