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Robert Lewandowski has been in red-hot form this season, scoring all of Bayern’s goals in the Bundesliga so far.
He was one of the best players against Hertha Berlin after he rescued a draw for his side with a pair of goals. The Pole performed even better in the second match against Schalke with a hat-trick to give his side a comfortable 3-0 win.
Lewandowski started his Bundesliga journey at Borussia Dortmund in 2010 and scored 74 league goals for the side in 4 seasons.
In the summer of 2014, the Poland international joined Dortmund’s rivals Bayern Munich on a free transfer. It is his sixth season for Bayern now, and he has 133 goals for them and counting.
There is no doubt that the 31 year old has the necessary experience, but will he win the top scorer award this season? Here are five reasons why Lewandowski will finish as top scorer in the 2019-20 Bundesliga season.
#1 He is one of the best strikers in the world
The Poland international can do it all: left foot, right foot, free kicks, penalties. You name it and he could do it.
This was evident in the match against Schalke. His first goal was a penalty in the 20th minute, after Kingsley Coman was brought down into the box. His stuttered run up allowed him to send the goalkeeper the wrong way.
He did the same thing against Hertha, with a penalty in the 60th minute. His shot was struck to the left while the goalkeeper hopelessly dived to the right.
His second goal against Schalke was a sublime free kick outside of the box which went over the wall and sailed past the goalkeeper to the top left corner.
The third goal demonstrated his world class ability. Lewandowski received the ball from Kingsley Coman on the edge of the box. With a deliberately heavy touch, he took the ball past Salif Sane and curled the ball into the bottom right corner with his right foot.
The striker has other tricks up his sleeves. He is able to hold up play and bring other people into play, and his clever movement off the ball allows him to run past defenders undetected. Lewandowski is truly one of the best in the goalscoring business.
#2 The Coman-Alaba and Gnabry-Kimmich combinations
After the departures of experienced wingers Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, Niko Kovac has turned to the youngsters Kingsley Coman and Serge Gnabry.
Both players have bags of pace and trickery. They are able to take on a defender easily but can also draw a foul if necessary.
These abilities mean that the wingers can put dangerous crosses into the box. Gnabry demonstrated this against Hertha. He made a devastating run down the right side and, spotting Lewandowski in the box, put in a low cross for the striker to slot it past the keeper.
A similar scenario occurred against Schalke but with Coman on the right this time. Again, the ball was driven low to Lewandowski’s foot on the edge of the box and the striker finessed the shot into the bottom right corner.
The wingers link up well with their respective full-backs: Coman with David Alaba on the left and Gnabry with Joshua Kimmich on the right.
Alaba and Kimmich like to push up high on the pitch and deliver swinging crosses into the box. This permits Lewandowski to utilise his heading abilities and power the ball past the goalkeeper.
An alternative option allows the full backs to drift into midfield and pick out the marauding runs of Coman and Gnabry. Overall, this aggressive and direct style of play from the left and right sides of the field will create more opportunities for Robert Lewandowski.
#3 The double pivot of Tolisso and Thiago
Corentin Tolisso plays the box-to-box midfield role for Bayern and as such, he is a very versatile player. He played a crucial role in Bayern's draw against Hertha.
He pressed aggressively against the opposition and retained possession for his team several sides. Afterwards, the Frenchman created a counterattack himself by charging up the pitch. He either directly played the ball to Lewandowski’s feet or gave the ball to Coman and Gnabry for the wingers to put crosses in the box.
Tolisso’s ability to turn defence into attack will be helpful for Bayern players to provide chances for Lewandowski up front.
Thiago is one of the best deep-lying playmakers in the world. He has the uncanny ability to play diagonal and cross-field passes with a high accuracy. These passes penetrate the opposition’s midfield and back line.
This allows Lewandowski to run in between defenders and receive one of Thiago’s long range passes. The Pole can put himself through on goal or play the ball out wide to Coman and Gnabry in order to overpower the opposition.
Ultimately, the steel of Tolisso combined with the flair of Thiago will lead to more goals for the striker.
#4 The addition of Coutinho
Bayern have replaced James Rodriguez with Philippe Coutinho in the central attacking midfield position. While James was more static in his position at Bayern, Coutinho is much more fluid in his play because he is able to take up positions across the front line.
The Brazilian draws defenders towards him and this was seen in his debut against Schalke. He utilised his close ball control to dribble past the opposition and sprayed the ball out wide to Coman and Gnabry under pressure. This could be beneficial for the wingers in future because they can drive with the ball and feed passes to Lewandowski for a shot on goal.
Coutinho has the potential to create a deadly partnership with Lewandowski. He can play one-two passes or through balls to the Pole in order to put him through on goal. Another attribute of the Brazil international is his shooting from a long way out. If he curls a shot from the edge of the box, Lewandowski may be able to convert a rebound.
Every season, the top scorer of the Bundesliga is presented with a miniature cannon, called the “Torjägerkanone” (the top scorer cannon). Currently legendary striker Gerd Müller holds all the records, with most goals in a season (40) and the most top scorer awards won (7).
At the moment, Lewandowski holds four of these cannons. He will be looking to add a fifth one this season, and if he is successful, it will be his third consecutive award.
With 5 goals in 2 Bundesliga games, Lewandowski is far ahead of the competition and it will be hard for other players to catch up with him. At this rate, he may not only surpass his personal best of 30 goals but also break Müller’s record of most goals in a Bundesliga season.
