In modern day football, there’s an ongoing debate as to who is Europe’s best out-and-out striker. Karim Benzema, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Gonzalo Higuaín have all been in the mix before. However, there are two strikers that come to mind, strikers that seem to have it all.
Robert Lewandowski of Bayern Munich and Luis Suarez of Barcelona. Obviously, the sole task of a forward is to put the ball in the back of the net, but these two can do it all – both score and assist.
Although a close call in comparison, Lewandowski has shown he can do it all. Left foot, right foot, header – the Poland international can score magnificent goals from both inside and outside the box, as well as putting five past Wolfsburg in just nine minutes after the Bavarians found themselves a goal down.
You can argue that Suarez’s goals for Liverpool almost saw them lift the Premier League trophy in 2014 for the first time since 1990.
Lewandowski’s importance to Bayern Munich is far more than Suarez’ to Barcelona. Take the Uruguay international out of the Catalan’s squad and they’re still going to score goals from a number of positions on the pitch. Take Lewandowski’s goals out of Bayern however and they have a whole different problem. The importance of the 28-year-old is significant, given the fact that misfiring Thomas Muller has score just five Bundesliga goals this campaign under Carlo Ancelotti.
In the one game that Lewandowski missed this season through suspension, Bayern failed to score.
Whether it’s German football bias or not, Bayern Munich and Germany legend Lothar Matthaus thinks that Lewandowski is the best striker in today’s game.
"For me, Lewandowski is the best number nine in the world," Matthaus wrote in his Sport Bild column in February. "He is better than players such as Karim Benzema and Luis Suarez. Chelsea striker Diego Costa also scores a lot and is a great finisher.
"But Lewandowski plays a much bigger role in his side's game. He scores with his left foot, with his right foot, with his head, he provides assists and is great on the ball.
"Suarez is a pure finisher, but Lewandowski was born with a certain understanding of the game."
What do the stats say?
Playing in Germany since 2010 when he joined Borussia Dortmund from Lech Poznan, Lewandowski has become one of the most feared No. 9 strikers in football to date. After scoring 103 goals in 187 games for BVB in all competitions, Bayern Munich were quick to snap the Poland international on a pre-contract.
Known for his goalscoring traits in Dortmund, a move to Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich in 2014 made him a more complete striker. It took 131 games for Lewandowski to score 74 Bundesliga goals for Dortmund, a tally the Pole surpassed in just 96 games for Bayern Munich.
The 77 goals in those 96 league games include 30 league goals in each of his past two Bundesliga seasons. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s two goals on the final day of the season, however, meant that Lewandowski missed out on the Torjagerkanone – Germany’s top scorer – by just one goal.
There’s no doubt about it that Lewandowski’s stats make him the most feared striker in today’s game. But where does Luis Suarez rank?
In a team that includes Andreas Iniesta, Neymar and Lionel Messi, a forward is always going to get you goals. Joining Barcelona from Liverpool in 2014, the Uruguay international has gone on to score 121 goals in 147 games in all competitions for the Spanish club.
In his first season at Barcelona, Suarez scored just 16 La Liga goals in 27 games, but what happened the following campaign was nothing short of magnificent. A 40-league goal tally in just 35 games saw the now 30-year-old have his best season to date, propelling him to further heights – whilst this season has seen the poacher score 29 league goals in 35 games.
Although you could argue the fact the Suarez has played alongside some of the greatest names in modern football – you could also say so has Lewandowski. Although Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben may not be up there alongside Messi and Neymar – they do offer a lot of support for the Bayern No. 9.
Robben has 14 assists in all competitions this season, seven of which has assisted Lewandowski whilst eight of Ribery’s 18 assists this season has assisted the great Pole.
An average of 3.4 shots per game for Suarez in comparison to Lewandowski’s 4.3 could suggest why Barcelona are so free-scoring, due to the fact goals are shared relatively equally between Barcelona’s front three, in comparison to Bayern Munich. Outscoring other Bundesliga teams by 17 goals – BVB being the closest contender – Lewandowski’s 30 league goals only contributes to 33.7% of Bayern’s 89 in the league this season.
Of Barcelona’s 116 La Liga goals this campaign however, Suarez has contributed just 25% – significantly less that Lewandowski’s goal ratio.
Although the goal stats suggest both players are very similar, Lewandowski seems to be able to do it all, whilst Suarez needs the players around him to regularly score 30 goals a season at the highest level.
