No player has scored more goals than Lewandowski in 2019
Every club wants a 20-goals-a-season striker but not many get one who has that many before it is even Halloween.
Bayern Munich have.
Robert Lewandowski scored twice as the Bundesliga giants beat Olympiakos 3-2 in the Champions League on Tuesday, taking the Poland international's tally for club and country in 2019-20 to an incredible 21 goals in just 17 games.
The 31-year-old's scintillating form has prompted many on social media to ask the question: is he the best number nine in the world right now?
Lewandowski >>>>> Messi and Ronaldo?
It is hard to argue with the statistics, certainly in 2019 anyway.
This year, no other player has scored more goals for their club than Lewandowski. Not Cristiano Ronaldo. Not Lionel Messi.
Goals in top five leagues in 2019
Rank Player Games Goals
1 Robert Lewandowski 36 36
2 Lionel Messi 36 32
3 Kylian Mbappe 32 29
4 Sergio Aguero 35 29
5 Raheem Sterling 39 27
17 Cristiano Ronaldo 29 18
This season he has been phenomenal, particularly at club level.
He has scored 18 goals in his 13 appearances in all competitions, at least six more than any other player in the big-five European leagues and has scored in each of Bayern's last 12 games.
In fact he has only failed to score in one game for Bayern this term - the 2-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the German Super Cup back on 3 August.
Lewandowski has also hit two hat-tricks this season - one for Bayern and one for Poland.
Goals in top five leagues in 2019-20 season
Player Games in all competitions Goals
Robert Lewandowski 13 18
Raheem Sterling 13 12
Andrea Belotti 14 11
Ciro Immobile 9 10
Sergio Aguero 10 10
In good company
Lewandowski's two goals in the Champions League on Tuesday moved him above Ruud van Nistelrooy in Champions League top scorer charts.
But he still has some way to go to match Messi and Ronaldo's exploits in the competition.
Champions League top scorers
Player Goals
Cristiano Ronaldo 127
Lionel Messi 112
Raul 71
Karim Benzema 60
Robert Lewandowski 57
Lewandowski's stunning stats down to a volcano?
Lewandowski couldn't fly to Blackburn nine years ago because of an ash cloud
At 31, Lewandowski is probably unlikely to catch either Messi or Ronaldo but his goalscoring statistics, particularly at an age when some players are past their best, are hugely impressive.
But Lewandowski's career could have taken a very different trajectory if not for a volcano preventing him from joining Blackburn from Polish side Lech Poznanback in April 2010.
The eruption of an Icelandic volcano nine years ago and the ash cloud that it created resulted in his flight to England's north-west being cancelled.
"I couldn't go because of the cloud. It was the volcano. The volcano with the ash cloud," Lewandowski, who eventually signed for Borussia Dortmund in June 2010, told the Times.
"It was one week and nobody could fly in Europe. The flight was booked, but we couldn't leave. It changed my life. If I had gone to Blackburn maybe I would have stayed there."
What might have been...
What do you think?
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Line-ups
Match Stats
Live Text
Line-ups
Olympiakos
1Malheiro de Sá
14Elabdellaoui
3Borges SemedoBooked at 73mins
20Meriah
21Tsimikas
8dos Santos Torres
10Castelo Podence
5BouchalakisSubstituted forLoveraat 69'minutes
4CamaraSubstituted forRandjelovicat 88'minutes
19MasourasSubstituted forGuerreroat 79'minutes
11El-ArabiBooked at 89mins
Substitutes
9Guerrero
16Allain
22Lovera
34Papadopoulos
57Xenitidis
76Boialvo Gaspar
97Randjelovic
Bayern Munich
1NeuerBooked at 72mins
32Kimmich
5Pavard
21HernándezSubstituted forBoatengat 59'minutes
27Alaba
6Thiago AlcántaraBooked at 50mins
8Martínez AguinagaSubstituted forTolissoat 45'minutes
25MüllerSubstituted forPerisicat 86'minutes
10Coutinho
22Gnabry
9Lewandowski
Substitutes
14Perisic
17Boateng
18Goretzka
19Davies
24Tolisso
26Ulreich
29Coman
Referee:
Danny Makkelie
Attendance:
31,670
Match Stats
Home TeamOlympiakosAway TeamBayern Munich
Possession
Home40%
Away60%
Shots
Home10
Away17
Shots on Target
Home3
Away6
Corners
Home7
Away7
Fouls
Home9
Away14
Live Text
Posted at
Match ends, Olympiakos 2, FC Bayern München 3.
Full TimePosted at 90'+5'
Second Half ends, Olympiakos 2, FC Bayern München 3.
Posted at 90'+4'
Corner, Olympiakos. Conceded by Serge Gnabry.
Posted at 90'+3'
Corner, FC Bayern München. Conceded by Guerrero.
Posted at 90'+3'
Attempt blocked. Serge Gnabry (FC Bayern München) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Joshua Kimmich.
Posted at 90'+3'
Attempt blocked. Philippe Coutinho (FC Bayern München) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Corentin Tolisso.
Posted at 90'+2'
Corner, Olympiakos. Conceded by Jérôme Boateng.
Posted at 90'+2'
Attempt blocked. Maximiliano Lovera (Olympiakos) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Konstantinos Tsimikas.
Posted at 90'+2'
Attempt missed. Philippe Coutinho (FC Bayern München) right footed shot from more than 35 yards misses to the left. Assisted by Serge Gnabry.
Posted at 90'+1'
Corner, Olympiakos. Conceded by David Alaba.
BookingPosted at 89'
Youssef El-Arabi (Olympiakos) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Posted at 89'
Corentin Tolisso (FC Bayern München) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 89'
Foul by Youssef El-Arabi (Olympiakos).
SubstitutionPosted at 88'
Substitution, Olympiakos. Lazar Randjelovic replaces Mohamed Camara.
Posted at 88'
Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern München) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 88'
Foul by Youssef El-Arabi (Olympiakos).
Posted at 87'
Attempt saved. Daniel Podence (Olympiakos) left footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Guerrero.
Posted at 86'
Foul by Philippe Coutinho (FC Bayern München).
Posted at 86'
Konstantinos Tsimikas (Olympiakos) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
SubstitutionPosted at 86'
Substitution, FC Bayern München. Ivan Perisic replaces Thomas Müller.
Posted at 85'
Corner, FC Bayern München. Conceded by Mohamed Camara.
Posted at 84'
Attempt saved. Joshua Kimmich (FC Bayern München) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Thiago.
Posted at 82'
Foul by Thomas Müller (FC Bayern München).
Posted at 82'
Mohamed Camara (Olympiakos) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 81'
Corner, FC Bayern München. Conceded by Rúben Semedo.
Goal!Posted at 79'
Goal! Olympiakos 2, FC Bayern München 3. Guilherme (Olympiakos) right footed shot from outside the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Maximiliano Lovera.
SubstitutionPosted at 79'
Substitution, Olympiakos. Guerrero replaces Giorgos Masouras.
Posted at 78'
Attempt missed. Thomas Müller (FC Bayern München) right footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Serge Gnabry with a cross.
Posted at 77'
Philippe Coutinho (FC Bayern München) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 77'
Foul by Giorgos Masouras (Olympiakos).
Goal!Posted at 75'
Goal! Olympiakos 1, FC Bayern München 3. Corentin Tolisso (FC Bayern München) right footed shot from outside the box to the top right corner.
Posted at 75'
Attempt blocked. Philippe Coutinho (FC Bayern München) left footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by David Alaba.
BookingPosted at 73'
Rúben Semedo (Olympiakos) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Posted at 73'
Thiago (FC Bayern München) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 73'
Foul by Rúben Semedo (Olympiakos).
Posted at 72'
Corner, Olympiakos. Conceded by Thomas Müller.
BookingPosted at 72'
Manuel Neuer (FC Bayern München) is shown the yellow card.
Posted at 71'
Foul by Joshua Kimmich (FC Bayern München).
Posted at 71'
Daniel Podence (Olympiakos) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Posted at 71'
Corner, Olympiakos. Conceded by Benjamin Pavard.
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Source: bbc.com