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FC Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski says he is “very proud” to have been named as the official Bundesliga Player of the Season for 2019/20, and believes his desire to “always be better” is what drives him to ever greater heights.
The 31-year-old played a leading role in Bayern lifting an eighth consecutive Bundesliga title, and topped the vote ahead of Bayern teammate Serge Gnabry, Bayer Leverkusen’s Kai Havertz, Borussia Dortmund duo Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland, RB Leipzig’s Timo Werner and Schalke attacker
Amine Harit.
“I have to say that I’m very happy, this award means a lot to me and I’m very proud of this title because the expectations on me are always very high,” Lewandowski told Bundesliga legend Lothar Matthaus.
“I’ve been playing in the Bundesliga for 10 years and everyone is accustomed to me always scoring goals and playing well, but I know that I always have to show something new or sometimes maybe spectacular.”
He certainly delivered on all counts in 2019/20, ending the campaign with an astonishing 34 league goals from 31 games to earn the top scorer’s prize for a fifth time, having previously set a new record as the first player to find the target in each of the opening 11 matches of a season.
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That included a hat-trick in the 3-0 win away to FC Schalke 04 on Matchday 2 that he selected as his personal highlight of the season, describing it as “an amazing feeling”.
And yet despite all the individual accolades and a bulging trophy cabinet that now houses eight Bundesliga winner’s medals – six with Bayern and two with Dortmund – the Polish sharpshooter is hungry for more, boldly claiming that his best “is still to come”.
“[The secret] is to always be better, to be the best and to get better,” he said.
“Looking forward: it doesn’t matter how many titles we won or how many goals I scored already, I want to be a better
player, a better striker, to score more goals. I’m trying to do my best.”
As easy as he makes it look, Lewandowski insisted 2019/20 was far from a straightforward campaign
for Bayern.
“I have to say that the first three or four months at the beginning of the season were very difficult for us and every goal I scored was very important for us,” he said of a period in which Niko Kovac was replaced by Hansi Flick as head coach following a 5-1 thrashing away to Eintracht Frankfurt on Matchday 10, before subsequent defeats to Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia
Monchengladbach left the Reds in seventh place on Matchday 15.
Bayern eventually steadied the ship and their unbeaten run in the second half of the season, comprising 16 wins and one draw, ensured the Meisterschale will be staying at the Allianz Arena for another yaward.
And if Lewandowski has anything to do with it, the championship shield won’t be leaving any time soon.
He added: “Goals are just one part of football. In the end the most important thing is how many titles you win as a team. If I score the goals and in the end we win the titles, this is the best thing that can happen for me.”
