As the saying goes, three things are certain in life; death, taxes and Robert Lewandowski scoring goals. The Poland striker has amassed 180 Bundesliga goals in 257 matches across spells at Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, with little sign of relenting any time soon.
Averaging more than a goal every other game, Lewy now sits third in the all-time list of Bundesliga goalscorers. He’s been the top-flight's leading scorer on three occasions, lifted the title six-times and frequently appears unstoppable.
With that in mind, Bundesliga defenders could do with a helping hand so here at bundesliga.com, we’ve looked over his career stats to shed a little light on how and when the prolific Pole scores to maybe level the playing field a little in 2018/19…
Get him on his left foot
It’s borderline madness to think Lewandowski has a weakness but there are a few areas of his game that defenders can exploit. One is that the Bayern man is far more prolific on his right foot than his left with 119 of his 180 Bundesliga goals coming from that magic right boot compared to a relatively paltry 35 on his weaker side. This was reinforced in 2017/18 when 18 of his 29 goals came via his right foot compared to six on his left.
Stop him shooting
Okay, this is an obvious one. Clearly, if you stop Lewandowski shooting then you stop him scoring, something far easier said than done. With a goal every 5.3 shots (949 in total), Lewandowski is as clinical as they come and those stats are getting better. The 98-time Poland international found the back of the net every four shots last year; an unerring record ominously improving.
At least make him shoot from range
The very epitome of Fox in the Box, Lewandowski is at his most dangerous from close range. He’s made an art of being in and around the penalty spot, more often than not taking chances that come his way with impeccable movement and that very handy knack of being in the right place at the right time. It’s a nightmare for opposition defenders but if you can keep Lewandowski as far from your goal as possible then your chances improve with just 11 of his 180 career goals coming from long-range.
Take away his home comforts
Across Lewandowski’s career, 111 goals at home and 69 on his travels certainly doesn’t represent the worst record in the world, in fact far from it. However, one blight on Lewandowski’s record last year was his away form. Completely at ease in the warm glow of the Allianz, Lewandowski scored 21 times in front of the Bayern faithful last season. Just eight goals on the road, however, underline the reward in making Lewandowski feel uncomfortable on your own turf.
Watch: All 29 of Lewandowski's Bundesliga goals in 2017/18
Strike while the iron's hot
Lewandowski’s goal-getting is remarkably consistent across the 90 minutes of every given match but there are a couple of troughs among the peaks. Of his 180 Bundesliga goals, 107 have come in the second-half and the longer the game goes on, the more inevitable it is he scores. When facing Lewy you’re probably going to have to outscore him, let alone his team-mates. And with over 20 per cent of his goals coming in the final 15 minutes as teams bend to his will, catching him cold early on is probably your best chance in getting your noses in front before Lewandowski warms to proceedings and, you know, scores...
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