How will Bayern be affected by Lewandowski’s departure? Nagelsmann will be under pressure, there has to be a change in playing style. Mané and Gnabry will play a big role

Quite possibly the biggest transfer of the summer is complete. Robert Lewandowski is leaving Bayern Munich for Barcelona. He is one of the best footballers of recent years, having come very close to winning the Ballon d’Or twice. What does his loss mean for the Bavarian outfit and how will they try to resolve it?

Bayern have lost more than a third of their goals

Robert Lewandowski has long been a key player for Bayern. However, as he got older, his performances started to get better and better and became more and more important for Bayern. Moreover, his goal production was a guarantee of absolute stability.

In the last three seasons he scored 55, 48 and 50 competitive goals. In all three seasons, this meant an average of 35% of Bayern’s goals scored across all competitions.

For Bayern, this means a considerable problem. It relied on its star to score goals. Indeed, it did not accept Lewandowski’s departure and rejected it. But in the end, he couldn’t do otherwise.

The Bavarian side has no player in their team who can be this productive. In the last three seasons, apart from Lewandowski, only one player has managed to surpass the 20-goal mark. That was Serge Gnabry in the 2019/20 season.

In all three of the last three seasons, Bayern have been happy when three other players besides Lewandowski have gone over the 10-goal mark. In all three seasons, that trio included Gnabry and Thomas Müller, and in two Leroy Sané.

Get a replacement? Impossible

While Robert Lewandowski is an absolute professional with a commendable attitude, he couldn’t have planned it worse in the event of leaving Bayern. At least from the Bavarian side’s point of view. After all, the club was hoping for a contract extension and didn’t even have a proper reason to really look for someone to replace him over time.

When the Polish sharpshooter announced his intention to leave, the biggest attacking stars, who could also typologically match Lewandowski’s game, had new contracts signed or new engagements found on the market. Whether it was Erling Haaland, Dusan Vlahovic or Darwin Núñez.

There was no one left on the market who at least partially matched Lewandowski’s qualities and did not cost an exorbitant amount. Bayern had apparently considered signing Victor Osimhen from Naples, but his price nullified any interest.

The most that could be offered for free is the engagement of veteran Luis Suárez, which would be tempting but unlikely. Andrea Belotti is also available. A great player for free, but to drag Bayern? No way.

Moreover, even before the departure of the Polish cannonballer, Bayern decided to reinforce the defence, which was indeed the weakest part of the team by European standards. The coveted right-back was finally brought in, Bayern will get a star reinforcement at stopper. The defence will be great.

Can Sadio Mané help plug the hole? Gnabry is also being considered

Lewandowski has been at Bayern for 8 long years. The style of play was simply based on using a real spike striker. After all, that’s why the Pole scored so many goals. It’s just that now the style of play will have to be overhauled.

Fortunately, coach Julian Nagelsmann is renowned for the emphasis he places on player versatility so that he can use the widest possible range of tactics and formation. In addition, the club acquired Sadio Mané from Liverpool in the summer, who could be a goal-scoring replacement for Lewandowski in no small part.

It is generally assumed that if Bayern can’t find reinforcements for the attack, Serge Gnabry and Sadio Mané will be the ones to take turns at the spearhead. Gnabry is used to the spike from the national team, Mané played on it occasionally at Liverpool.

Moreover, Mané has managed to score a good number of goals in the Premier League itself, which is more defensive and doesn’t play as much open football. At least in the Bundesliga he could really shine as a goalscorer.

In the Champions League, however, the absence of a born cannonballer will be a problem. Manchester City, for example, know this and have brought in Erling Haaland to help them to their first triumph in the millionaire competition.

In short, it’s good to have a player who can score goals and deliver big performances in important games. An example of this is Karim Benzema last season. Or Lewandowski’s performance in 2019/20. Before that, Real Madrid won with Ronaldo on the pitch. Even though the teams in question may not have played at their best, efficiency secured the victory.

Bayern need to change their style of play, they may be harder to read

The conclusion is clear. Without Lewandowski and his replacement, Bayern will have to change the way they play. They simply can no longer rely on the Polish striker to find the ball, always stand in the right place and unleash the net in the opposition’s goal.

However, with the players Bayern have at their disposal, we can look forward to some interesting rotations. Mané, Gnabry, Müller, Sané or Coman… A great mix of players who can change positions on the pitch. Bayern could be much harder to read.

Moreover, they can now rely on their defence much more than in recent seasons. At the very least, it will be encouraged to do so. We cannot expect to see Bayern playing defensively. Certainly not in the Bundesliga. However, in the Champions League, unusually for Bayern, it is defence that may be the key to success.

Source: Bayern Munich