Everything looked pretty normal on that Tuesday evening in Bavaria. Bayern Munich was hosting Wolfsburg in the early stages of the Bundesliga and both teams headed to the locker room with the visiting side leading 0-1. Bayern’s coach Pep Guardiola proceeded to some rearrangements in his squad and Robert Lewandowski stepped onto the pitch. The next is history. 

On that unforgettable night, it took Lewandowski exactly 8 minutes and 59 seconds to score not three, not four, but five goals! An all-time record of efficiency. Back then, the Pole did not need to be introduced to the football world, being largely seen as one of the very best strikers of his generation. He had already impressed in the previous years by carrying Borussia Dortmund to the title on two consecutive occasions while finishing best scorer of the league. 

He showed football fans from all around the world what he is capable of by scoring an outstanding four goals in the semi-finals of the Champions League in the Spring of 2013, knocking out the Spanish giants to get a spot in the final. So his 5 goals in 9 minutes were not even the first “miraculous” achievement of Lewandowski’s career. 

When asked about his performance after the game, Lewandowski answered with a big smile: “It’s a shame I did not score a sixth one!”

Years pass and Robert Lewandowski keeps on doing what he does best. At 37, the Polish striker not only performs in one of the best clubs in the world but also continues to write the history of the game. “RL9” shows no signs of slowing down despite his age and the fact that he is likely playing his last season with the Blaugranas. 

If he continues performing at such a high level for two more seasons, he is likely to overtake the Brazilian legend Pele and his 762 career goals. Should he achieve that, he would become the third highest scorer in the history of the game behind the two half-gods that are Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. In Barcelona itself, the Pole is now the 15th best scorer in the club’s history with 105 goals and always hunting for more.

Author: British Poles

Image: X (@sport_tvppl)