Robert Lewandowski joins Barcelona from Bayern Munich

One of the biggest transfer storylines in recent memory has finally been resolved with Polish striker Robert Lewandowski joining Barcelona from Bayern Munich for a €45m fee. Lewandowski, one of the best goalscorers in the world, stunned the Bayern brass with his transfer request a month ago, but after some deliberation they decided to grant his request to leave after eight years in Munich.

Lewandowski is now 33 years old but has shown no signs of slowing down. He was the runner-up for the Ballon d’Or last year and had 50 goals in 46 appearances for the German giants. During his time at Bayern, his team won the Bundesliga every year while Lewandowski established himself as one of the best strikers in the world.

He was the top scorer in the Bundesliga each of the past six seasons and was remarkably consistent in that sense. He was a hot commodity on the transfer market but it was unclear whether Bayern would let him leave with one year left on the contract.

READ: Best soccer betting sites in 2022

Barcelona are apparently in debt but were able to work out their budget in order to sign Lewandowski. He will instantly become their star player and fill the gap Lionel Messi left last season when he moved to Paris Saint-Germain. Barcelona are in the process of rebuilding their squad, so getting someone as composed as Lewandowski will go a long way for them. He and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will rotate playing as the central striker for the Catalan squad, and while they are both veterans, the rest of the squad is very young. It is assumed they will both be in leadership roles for the club.

Even with Lewandowski, Barcelona’s odds to win La Liga are not super appealing. Real Madrid are currently the team to beat in the Spanish league as they have a more well-rounded squad. But the public will always be mesmerized by the name ‘Barcelona’, and that makes their odds shorter than what they should be. At +137 with Bovada to win La Liga, Barca should be avoided in the outright betting for now.

Real have a perfect blend of youth and experience and are just a class above Barcelona right now. They have depth at every position, and while Barcelona’s best 11 is strong, they do not have the depth Real have. If some injuries hit Barca in key positions, they will have a tough time filling in those gaps. Still, Lewandowski is one of the best players in the world, and landing him should help Barcelona improve on what was a disappointing 2021/22 campaign.

More sports news