It’s official now. Bayern Munich has sold Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona for a reported fee of €50m and on a three-year deal. Whilst it bears good news to the Catalan giants, it is a horrible time for the Bavarians.
With just about two weeks left for the Bundesliga season to commence, Bayern Munich are on a mission to bring in an ideal replacement for the Polish international.
Let’s take a look at 5 possible replacements the German champions could look to bring in this summer:
#1 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
The Portuguese forward’s second spell in England has been rather underwhelming by his own high standards.
Despite being the club’s top scorer with 18 goals, the Red Devils struggled to compete with Manchester City and Liverpool and somehow managed to finish outside the Champions League spots.
Unfortunately, his second spell with the Red Devils is likely to end after just one year as the Portuguese has reportedly informed the club that he wants to leave.
🗣 “Robert [Lewandowski] has been THE player at Bayern [Munich] over the last years.”
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) July 21, 2022
Jürgen Klinsmann says Bayern Munich won’t be able to replace Robert Lewandowski one for one due to his quality. pic.twitter.com/6tHOnnfWAE
For the first time since 2004/05, Ronaldo has managed to go a season without winning any silverware. With Manchester United missing out on a Champions League spot, this will be the first time since 2002 that he won’t be a part of the premier European competition.
This could change though should Bayern Munich come calling. According to various sources, the German champions are in contact with Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes despite club executives denying the reports.
Bayern Munich needs an experienced goalscorer upfront and a short-term fix like Ronaldo could work.
Having already brought in a mix of youth and experience with signings like Gravenberch, Mazaroui and Sadio Mane from Ajax and Liverpool respectively, adding Ronaldo to the squad would boost their chances of lifting silverware as well.