Lewandowski Ready To Shine Following Dream Move To Bayern
Personal information
Full name: Robert Lewandowski
Date of birth: 21 August 1988
Age: 25
Place of birth: Warsaw, Poland
Height: 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position: Striker
Club information
Current team: Bayern Munich
Number: 9
Youth career
1997–2004: Varsovia
Senior career
2006–2008: Znicz Pruszkow 34 Appearances, 21 goals
2008–2010: Lech Poznan 82 Appearances, 41 goals
2010–2014: Borussia Dortmund 185 Appearances, 103 goals
2014– Bayern Munich 0 Appearances, 0 goals
National team
2008: Poland U21 3 Appearances, 0 goals
2008– Poland 61 Appearances, 19 goals
Robert Lewandowski has finally been unveiled as a Bayern Munich player having officially completed his long awaited move from Borussia Dortmund. The Polish striker, who signed a pre-contract agreement with the record breaking Bundesliga champions back in January, left Dortmund on a free transfer upon the expiration of his contract at the end of June. Dortmund had declined the opportunity to let the forward leave for a transfer fee last summer, after failing to reach an agreement on extending his deal.
Lewandowski is one of the best strikers in world football at the moment. Over the past few seasons Lewandowski has blossomed into one of Europe’s finest goalscorers. In 185 total appearances for Dortmund he scored 101 times since joining from Polish side Lech Poznan in 2010, helping them to claim the Bundesliga in his first two seasons at the club, as well as the German Cup in his second. He will surely be a great asset to what is already one of the best club sides of the last 20 years.
Lewandowski follows attacking midfielder Mario Gotze as the second key player to switch from Dortmund to Bayern in as many seasons. He is rarely injured and has excellent fitness, able to run at length for 90 minutes, and is just as likely to finish a goal from distance, as he is from poaching in the six-yard box. Lewandowski was officially unveiled on Wednesday July 9 to the Bayern Munich faithful. He was given the No.9 shirt, which was previously held by Mario Mandzukic, who made his way to Ateltico Madrid this summer for a reported fee of 22 million euros.
Lewandowski brings a prolific goalscoring record with him. Scoring is just in his nature. The striker picked up 20 goals over the course of his farewell season at Borussia Dortmund and topped the scorers chart in the Bundesliga, making it an emotional and fitting farewell. He is always there or there about amongst the top goalscorers, having placed second and third in the previous two seasons scoring 22 and 23 goals respectively. He may have scored less than in previous campaigns, but the forward notched up his tally of 20 from just 60 shots on target, averaging a goal every one in three accurate strikes – a stat bettered by only Mario Mandzukic.
The Pole is the trademark centre-forward every club craves in terms of his height, build and strength. Last season he also managed to get a very respectable seven assists which goes a long way to show his all-round ability. The striking master-class of Lewandowski was felt by 11 of the opposing 17 teams in the Bundesliga. Interestingly though, he failed to score past new club Bayern, Bayer Leverkusen, Schalke and Borussia Monchengladbach, four of the five teams who finished in the top six.
Having said this, it would be unfair to say he isn’t a ‘big game player’. This is the man who single-handedly put four past Real Madrid in May 2013. Despite 2013/14 not being his best season in a Dortmund shirt, Lewandowski has already lifted the Bundesliga title. This is important for anyone joining a side full of champions and now world champions too.
It took him a season to get into the swing of things at Dortmund after leaving Lech Poznan, but the Polish striker knows the league well now. He also had the summer off as Poland failed to qualify for the World Cup, so he should be fresh and ready to take the Bundesliga by storm again. With confirmation of Lewandowski’s move to the “Deutsche Meisters”, Mario Mandzukic has taken the opportunity to move on to a new challenge at Atletico Madrid. The arrival of the Polish attacker nudged Mandzukic towards the exit, much like when the Croatian dislodged former Bayern teammate Mario Gomez from the starting line-up.
The league wasn’t a problem for Pep’s Bayern side last season but they struggled in major European matches. The Bavarians lacked that cutting edge, notably not managing to score past Real Madrid over 180 minutes. Lewandowski will bring more presence and offer something different than Mandzukic did, even though the Croatian is slightly taller. His eye for a goal and his experience in Europe will help Bayern re-establish themselves on the biggest stage. Signing such a talent on a free transfer is a real coup for Bayern and one thing is for sure, we should expect goals galore at the Allianz Arena.