New role for the Bayern star: How the Lewandowski team became a team with Lewandowski

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Robert Lewandowski's share of Bayern's goals has shrunk, but not his importance for the team

There was a goal at this Champions League final tournament that describes the new Robert Lewandowski better than any other. It fell in Bayern's 8-2 win against Barcelona. Lewandowski didn't score it himself.

It was the 85th minute and the game was decided for a long time when Lewandowski sprinted in the direction of Barcelona's Gerard Piqué. He wanted to steal the ball from the defender.

Piqué fit back to the goalkeeper.
Lewandowski ran after the ball.
The ball came back to Piqué.
Lewandowski ran after the ball.
Piqué suited Messi.
Lewandowski ran after the ball. And conquered him.

After the exhausting part was over, the nifty part began. While Thomas Müller got the ball, Lewandowski ran forward in an arc. But that didn't serve him himself, he even indicated it to Müller by signaling to him with an outstretched arm where the ball was to be played: into the room that Lewandowski had opened because he lured Piqué with him. Seconds later, Philippe Coutinho met from there.

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Cheering together: Philippe Coutinho and Lewandowski (r.)

Coutinho scored two goals as a joker in the 15 minutes he was on the field. Lewandowski scored once in 90 minutes. He contributed two of the eleven goals Bayern scored in Lisbon.

Almost a little little for someone like him.

Lewandowski has been 32 years old since Friday. The best season of his career lies behind him. He has scored 55 goals in 46 competitive games so far. He was the top scorer in the Bundesliga. He will be the top scorer in the Champions League. He still has the chance to set the goal record for Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored 17 goals in the premier class in 2013/2014. Lewandowski is at 15. In an election for World Footballer of the Year, he will be one of the most promising candidates.

Since Flick came in, the dependence on his goals has decreased

Lewandowski is also behind a season during which his role at Bayern has changed. Since Hansi Flick took over as coach from Niko Kovac, the Munich team has been a little less dependent on the striker's hits.

The Lewandowski offensive emancipated itself during his season with the highest scoring.

Under Kovac, Bayern's possession game was a little less planned than under Flick. This applies to everything for the movements in the attack third. Much depends there on improvisation, on the class of individuals. Lewandowski was the end point of almost all advances.

Flick, on the other hand, pushed the positional play, a tactical orientation that Bayern had once almost perfected under Pep Guardiola. Attacks are now more systematic, certain zones must be consistently occupied, no matter by whom. The goal is to tear gaps in the opponent.

That is why Lewandowski appears more often outside the penalty area. Therefore, Müller and Leon Goretzka constantly hit the opposing goal. And so FC Bayern developed from a Lewandowski team to a strong team with Lewandowski.

Numbers prove that.

Under Kovac, Lewandowski scored an average of 1.31 times per 90 minutes. The whole team achieved an average of 2.75 goals while Lewandowski was on the pitch. Lewandowski's share of all Bayern hits was 47.6 percent.

Under Flick, Bayern meet Lewandowski more often on the lawn: 3.13 times. But Lewandowski's share has decreased significantly. It is only 37.6 percent.

Lewandowski's influence has not decreased. He has changed

That doesn't mean that Lewandowski plays worse. Even its influence on the game hasn't necessarily decreased. But he has changed: Instead of waiting for deals in the penalty area, he opens up spaces like against Barcelona for Coutinho. Or is ideal for double passes with teammates who are advancing. Then they score goals from positions that Lewandowski would have occupied a few months ago.

With his work against the ball, Lewandowski also influenced the Bayern game in a completely new way. Perhaps that is no less important than one or two additional hits. Pressing moments like against Barcelona do not provide many center forwards in the Champions League. You can get your fellow players carried away. And they symbolize this FC Bayern, a team that works relentlessly towards the next goal even when the game is over and the final whistle is near.

And Lewandowski continues to score consistently, 1.18 times on average. A fantastic value. His movements in the penalty area remain world class, as is his acceptance of the ball. He's still playing games that make people talk about him above all else. He was directly involved in four goals against Chelsea in early August.

But the fact that the goals are now spread out a little more, that different players are regularly dangerous, is probably no coincidence, but a trend.

Lewandowski will be able to live with it very well.

Now it is no longer up to him alone to shoulder the offensive. It is no longer necessarily an exception that Bayern are clearly in the lead although he has not yet scored himself. Nevertheless, he was visibly happy for his teammates in Lisbon when they scored a goal, although he himself had not received anything up until then. Not a matter of course for center strikers.

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A long time ago: Lewandowski in 2012 in black and yellow. Incidentally, after a goal against FC Bayern

Michael son / AP

Lewandowski has known the feeling of being the goalscorer of a successful team for many years. The feeling of winning the Champions League, not. Once he was close. Not with Bayern Munich, but with BVB.

When there was an exit from Munich two years ago, it was said that Lewandowski wanted to move to Real Madrid. That club just won the Champions League for the third time in a row. He had only become a master once during this period. Lewandowski stayed, he had to stay. Now he is not lacking much and he won the title with Bayern. On Sunday evening, it will be decided against Paris Saint-Germain whether that will succeed (9 p.m.; TV and stream: ZDF, Sky and DAZN; live ticker SPIEGEL.de).

A few fewer hits, but the victory in the premier class. Sounds like a good deal.