Bundesliga
Lewandowski’s departure to Barca leaves Bayern seeking new star striker
The departure of Robert Lewandowski leaves Bayern Munich with the unenviable task of finding a replacement for the Bundesliga’s most prolific contemporary striker after his relationship with the club turned sour.
Following eight glorious years in Munich, winning the Bundesliga each season and lifting the Champions League trophy in 2020, Lewandowski announced in late May that “my story with Bayern comes to an end”.
The forward turns 34 in August, yet Lewandowski is showing no signs of slowing down and now embarks on a fresh challenge to make as much impact on Spain’s La Liga as he did in the Bundesliga.
He scored 35 times last season in Germany’s top flight, after breaking the single-season scoring record in the previous campaign with 41 Bundesliga goals, snatching the record from Gerd Mueller who held it for 49 years.
The Polish striker quits Germany’s top flight having scored 312 goals in 383 Bundesliga games for Bayern and former club Dortmund.
Only German legend Mueller, who scored 365 goals for Bayern in 427 Bundesliga games during the 1960s and 1970s, netted more.
But since Lewandowski won Fifa’s best male player award for the second year running in January, his relationship with Bayern has progressively unravelled.
Communications breakdown
With Lewandowski’s contract expiring in 2023, Bayern sports director Hasan Salihamidzic insisted at the start of the year that the star striker was central to their plans.
Yet when a Sky reporter relayed the message in a post-match interview in February, Lewandowski dropped the first hint that communications had broken down. “I’m hearing that for the first time,” he said.
As reports emerged that Barcelona were eager to fulfil the striker’s wish of playing at the Camp Nou, Salihamidzic and Bayern CEO Oliver Kahn could only insist Lewandowski would be held to his contract.
He finished last season banging in goals for Bayern, earning the trophy as the Bundesliga’s top-scorer for the fifth straight year.
Despite winning a 10th straight Bundesliga title last season, there was a lingering air of disappointment after Bayern’s shock Champions League exit to Villarreal in the quarter-finals.
A defeat in Spain and draw at home showed how far Bayern currently are from the summit of European football, fuelling Lewandowski’s desire to leave.
As tensions simmered between the player and club, head coach Julian Nagelsmann admitted he wanted the matter resolved to plan for next season.
Lewandowski’s team-mate Leon Goretzka said it was important to “find a good solution for everyone involved.”
Yet the prolific poacher will not be easy to replace.
His 55 goals in all competitions in 2019/20 were key to Bayern winning the treble, as Lewandowski became the first player to be top-scorer in the Champions League, Bundesliga and German Cup competitions in a single season.
Five goals, nine minutes
He has made a career out of stunning goal-scoring feats.
In 2015, he needed just under nine electrifying minutes off the bench to score five goals, leading the charge as Bayern roared back from a goal down against Wolfsburg to dish out a 5-1 thrashing.
Two years earlier, Lewandowski scored four goals for Borussia Dortmund in the 2013 semi-final first leg against Real Madrid, helping his former club into the final, where they were beaten by Bayern at Wembley.
Lewandowski was spotted as a raw 21-year-old playing for Polish club Lech Poznan, where he scored 41 goals in 82 games, and joined Dortmund in 2010.
He made his breakthrough under Juergen Klopp, helping Dortmund win back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2010/11 and 2011/12.
Lewandowski put himself firmly on Bayern’s radar with a hat-trick against them in the prestigious surroundings of Berlin’s Olympic Stadium as Dortmund romped to a 5-2 win in the 2012 German Cup final.
Two years later, Bayern signed him on a free transfer and, thanks largely to Lewandowski’s ruthlessness in front of goal, the Bavarian giants have since dominated the Bundesliga.
His depature to Spain is perhaps the biggest threat to Bayern’s monopoly of Gefmany’s top flight with the hunt for a new star striker potentially now on.
-AFP
Bundesliga
Boniface strikes twice for Leverkusen in 4-1 win at Hoffenheim
Champions Bayer Leverkusen cruised to a 4-1 victory at Hoffenheim on Saturday thanks to a dazzling performance by Victor Boniface that included two goals and an assist.
Leverkusen, who face Feyenoord at the start of the Champions League campaign next week, bounced back after losing to RB Leipzig just before the international break for what was their first domestic defeat in more than a season.
On Saturday they took control quickly and struck twice in the first half-hour, with Boniface twice beating the offside trap to give the visitors a 2-0 lead.
The Nigerian first set up Martin Terrier for a tap-in after 17 minutes and then scored himself in the 30th.
Hoffenheim’s Mergim Berisha, making his first appearances since a knee ligament tear last November, cut the deficit in the 37th and had another chances for a second goal a little later.
Leverkusen, however, never lost control of the game and restored their two-goal lead courtesy of a Florian Wirtz penalty in the 72nd.
Boniface then single-handedly dismantled the Hoffenheim defence with a strong run down the left, powering a shot past keeper Oliver Baumann in the 75th to lift Leverkusen to fourth place on six points.
Borussia Dortmund are top on seven points, with Bayern Munich, on six, visiting Holstein Kiel later on Saturday.
-Reuters
Bundesliga
Guinea player, Naby Keita suspended for rest of season by Bundelisga side
Werder Bremen have suspended Guinea’s Naby Keita for the rest of the season and forced him to pay a ‘substantial fine’ after he refused to play in Sunday’s Bundesliga clash with Bayer Leverkusen.
Keita made headlines over the weekend when he refused to travel with his teammates and instead went home after finding out that he would not make the starting lineup for the game which eventually saw Leverkusen crowned Bundesliga champions.
While reports claim Keita will receive a ‘substantial fine’, an official statement from the club has revealed he will serve a suspension. Keita will be not be selected for games for the rest of this season, while he will also be banned from training with the team and featuring in the dressing room.
Bremen director Clemens Fritz said: “Naby’s behaviour cannot be tolerated for us as a club. With this action, he let his team down in a tense sporting and personnel situation and placed himself above the team.
“We can’t allow that. At this stage of the season we need full focus on the remaining games and a team that is very close together. There was therefore no alternative to our measures.”
The former Liverpool midfielder joined the club as a free agent on a three-year deal in the summer of 2023, following a poor spell at Anfield.
The 29-year-old was keen to defend himself and his professionalism, taking to Instagram to share his point of view. He said: “Ever since I arrived at this magnificent club, I have always shown my professionalism.
“I have always tried to help the club and the great supporters, especially during this time of poor results. Since the start of my career, I have never had problems with my discipline and have always shown an exemplary attitude. I will not accept any person trying to tarnish my image.
“To the supporters, I have always worked hard in training to get the right result at the weekend. In training, I can only give my best.”
Keita has played just 106 minutes for Bremen since moving back to the Bundesliga last summer and now will be unable to secure any further game time during the current campaign.
Bundesliga
Alonso Hails Boniface, Other Players for Leverkusen’s Bundesliga Triumph
Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso hailed their Bundesliga triumph as “something extraordinary” after they secured their first title in the club’s 120-year history on Sunday evening.
Bayer Leverkusen had a 13-point lead heading into the match against Werder Bremen, knowing a victory would secure the Bundesliga even with five matches remaining. The hosts made easy work of Bremen as they won 5-0 thanks to a penalty from Victor Boniface, a wonderful strike from Granit Xhaka and a Florian Wirtz hat trick.
The triumph marked the end of Bayern Munich’s run of 11 straight titles, and a breakthrough for Leverkusen after they came so close in both 2000 and 2002.
“This is a very special moment for the club,” Alonso said post-match. “After 120 years, to win the Bundesliga for the first time is something extraordinary. The players performed, they were a top team together. I am so proud of all of them. For me, it’s an honour to work here.
“Finally, we can say Bayer Leverkusen is a German champion. It’s a huge honour for all of us. It was earned by the team, by the club, by the fans. Everyone, all departments, was working and fighting for this title, so we are a result of that hard work over many years. This is a moment to enjoy and a huge success for this club. The first title is always special for everyone. So to be part of this history feels incredible.”
When asked when he thought the title was within reach, he pinpointed their win over Bayern Munich on Feb. 10, which gave Bayer a five-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga. By the time Matchday 29 ticked around, Bayer Leverkusen were 16 points ahead of Bayern.
“That game against Bayern at home,” Alonso said. “It could have turned out that they would have been ahead of us. We didn’t talk about winning the title in the locker room that day but we all knew.
“We were all thinking about it. With the consistency, the quality of our game over the season, we earned this title. It’s not easy and we were living it every day, which made us believe. It’s an incredible team; all the players, even the young guys, worked so hard. Everyone was always preparing hard. We might need a little more time to reflect on what we accomplished but right now, we want to enjoy this.”
As Leverkusen closed in on history, fans invaded the pitch twice in the final 10 minutes. The first mini-invasion came after Wirtz’s second, and Leverkusen’s fourth, in the 83rd minute. Alonso and the players beckoned the supporters back. When Wirtz scored his third and their fifth in the 89th minute, the invasion was larger. The referee waited for the 90th minute and with fans still on the pitch, blew for full time.
“The fans were top,” Alonso said. “They lined the whole way to the stadium. We could see that they wanted this and we talked about it in the locker room, that we wanted to transform their energy onto the field. And again the players delivered and for me that’s special.”
Alonso said he did not feel the external expectation and pressure of having a role in ending Bayern’s dominance of German football.
“The weight of history was not heavy inside me,” Alonso told ESPN’s Archie Rhind-Tutt.
“I was hearing that but I said, ‘Let’s see what happens.’ It was about bringing the right players; the staff were really supportive. We had a good team to play a good season but we have overcome expectations with the way we have played and deserved the results. It’s difficult to put into words but happy to be part of it.”
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