Bayern Munich: Robert Lewandowski wins European Golden Boot
By Daniel Garza
For the first time in his career, Robert Lewandowski has won the European Golden Boot. The Bayern Munich striker scored an incredible 41 goals in 29 Bundesliga appearances to claim the top scorer spot in Europe. It’s truly been an incredible campaign from Lewandowski who was also able to break Gerd Muller’s 49-year single-season scoring record en route to becoming the European Golden Boot winner.
Winning by over ten goals
Lewandowski’s 41 goals was by far the highest total recorded by any player in Europe. In second place was Lionel Messi who registered 30 goals during Barcelona’s La Liga campaign. Right behind Messi in third place was Cristiano Ronaldo. The Juventus player recorded 29 goals during his Serie A season. Bettering these two legendary players’ goal-scoring numbers is an incredible achievement as they have both won this award multiple times.
It only took Lewandowski 29 appearances to reach 41 goals which allowed him to record an impressive 1.50 goals per 90 minutes played. Messi played in 35 matches for Barcelona while Ronaldo featured in 33 fixtures for Juventus.
Even despite missing a small portion of Bayern’s season in April, Lewandowski was able to win the European Golden Boot by a wide margin. His closest competitors were able to make more appearances than him but that was not enough to better his goal total. His consistency truly was unmatched.
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The Bayern striker was not the only Bundesliga player to finish within the top five. Eintracht Frankfurt’s Andre Silva finished in fourth place with 28 goals and Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Braut Haaland ended up tied for fifth with Kylian Mbappe with 27 goals. There’s no question the Bundesliga was well represented this season as these three players excelled when it came to producing goals on a consistent basis.
The first Bundesliga winner in 49 years
Interestingly enough, the last Bundesliga player to win the European Golden Boot was Muller. His 40 goals during the 1971/72 season earned him the title.
On Saturday, Lewandowski not only broke his record but also became the first Bundesliga player in 49 years to claim the award. Muller is one of only 11 players to have won two European Golden Boot titles or more during their careers and that is a group Lewandowski will certainly be looking to join in the future.
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In addition to becoming just the second Bundesliga player to win the European Golden Boot, Lewandowski also became the first Polish player to lead Europe in goals scored. Furthermore, the 32-year-old is the first player to score 40 goals or more in a domestic season since Luis Suarez scored exactly 40 goals in the 2015/16 season. Lewandowski’s 41 goals will be tied for 11th place all-time in the European Golden Boot. Messi holds the record with his 50 goal campaign in the 2011/12 season.