Why Did Lewandowski Fail To Join Manchester United?

Robert Lewandoski almost moved to Manchester United (Instagram/@_rl9).

JAKARTA - Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski revealed that he almost joined Manchester United in 2012 to work under coach Sir Alex Ferguson.

However, the move to Old Trafford did not materialize because his club at the time, Borussia Dortmund, was blocking the transfer.

Lewandowski then joined Bayern Munich in the summer of 2014 as a free agent.

"I decided to join Manchester United and said yes. I want to join Manchester United, to meet Alex Ferguson."

"They (Dortmund) can't sell me because they know if I stay, they can get more money. I can wait maybe another year or two. However, it is true that I accept Manchester United," he told the BBC.

Lewandowski, who was also the target of Blackburn Rovers before arriving at Dortmund from Lech Poznan in 2010, had mixed feelings for not playing in the Premier League.

"Maybe it could be regret (not playing in the English League). However, when I reminisced about (after) playing for Bayern Munich, Dortmund, and now Barcelona, I had to say I was very happy with my career," he said.

Lewandowski has a brilliant career in Germany. He left Bayern Munich as the club's second-highest goalscorer of all time with 344 goals behind Gerd Muller.

He won the Bundesliga in eight seasons at Bayern Munich and won the Champions League in 2019/2020.

Success also followed in Barcelona, where he had raised two La Liga titles, two Spanish Super Cups, and one Copa del Rey in three seasons at the club.

"I don't feel like I lost anything because of every movement or decision I made, it was based on my wishes," he said.

Lewandowski, who last season matched Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as the only players in Champions League history with 100 goals or more, entering the 22nd season as a professional player.

He is still motivated to continue to compete with young players.

"When I saw that I still didn't need to chase young players, that they still had to chase me, that means next season can also be really good."

"I'm still here to show my best performance. I understand that I can't compete with them, but I can help them."

"They can also help me. I learned a lot from them. I didn't expect it to be like that," said Lewandowski, who will turn 37 on August 21, 2025.

Meanwhile, Lamine Yamal is one of the young players leading Barcelona. Lewandowski was not surprised by Yamal's brilliant success after seeing how special he was when he first trained with the first team in 2022.

"This is the first time in my life I've seen after 50 minutes that he has something special."

"I don't believe it because I don't see players like this at this age. I think it's impossible at the age of 15," said Lewandowski.

The 18-year-old is one of the favorites to win this year's Ballon d'Or award.

"The Yamal season is incredible, but in the end it depends on what is most important. He still has a lot of time."

"If not this year, maybe next year," said the Polish player.