Barcelona are bracing up for Robert Lewandowski’s summer exit after four years since his famous move from Bundesliga heavyweights Bayern Munich, which made him the first to make such a move since Patrik Andersson in 2001.
The move has been a success for Barcelona’s plans as it helped the club make up for some of the goalscoring burden left by the departure of Lionel Messi the previous summer before the Pole arrived.
Lewandowski helped Barcelona to the league title in his first year, claiming the Pichichi with 23 goals and assisting seven others in 34 LaLiga games.
It was revealed in his biography that the club instructed him to stop scoring goals after they had won the league title in his first year, 2022-23, due to a clause in his transfer agreement that would have meant they would pay more to Bayern Munich for the deal.
Robert Lewandowski continued to shine for the Blaugrana and now has a total of 109 goals and 21 assists in 163 games across all competitions, making him rank 13th in the all-time leading goalscorer list for the club.
The club is now looking to move on the 37-year-old at the expiration of his contract in the summer, but as for the striker, he would love to be around for a little while.
For Barcelona, moving him on is better for the club, and in this article, we look at the five reasons why the club deemed it necessary for the star striker to leave in the coming summer window.
5 reasons Barça would prefer Robert Lewandowski gone
1. Wage problems
Even though reports suggest that Robert Lewandowski would be willing to take a pay cut to continue at Barcelona, it wouldn’t work well with the club’s budget.
The Pole is already the highest earner at the club, taking home around €400,577 per week, and no pay cut for a superstar would work in favour of both parties, especially with the potential of teenagers like Lamine Yamal earning three times more.
2. Decrease in efficiency
Age has taken its toll on Robert Lewandowski and he is no longer the player he was when he signed his first Barcelona contract four summers ago.
Last season produced his best productive year in Barcelona colours but that was majorly down to the form of the attack as a unit. Even backup striker Ferran Torres delivered some unbelievable statistics.
In addition, the game requires more physicality, and pressing has become as important as goalscoring, because teams now feast on turnovers. But Lewandowski does not make the numbers count at this because he can not press as a younger player would.
3. Pave the way for another superstar striker
The departure of Robert Lewandowski will free up space in the squad, allowing the club to bring in another superstar striker to complement the talent of Raphinha and Lamine Yamal, both in age and talent.
Lewandowski is undoubtedly one of the greatest strikers of his generation, but the game has moved on, and Barcelona wants to evolve the dynamism of their attack, to have all three attackers on level ground in today’s football.
How promising would that be?
4. Secondary role already taken
To remain at the club, Robert Lewandowski will have to settle for a secondary role, which has been occupied by a younger and reliable Spanish forward, Ferran Torres.
Torres also offers more energy and versatility, and would in no way affect the harmony of the team due to his inability to get desired minutes because he has been proven to be, unlike Robert Lewandowski, who isn’t used to being a secondary figure.
5. His ending contract
Letting go of a 37-year-old at the end of their contract would never sound like a bad business decision in football. This is the reality of the sport, and Barcelona would only be making the best business decision.
