Apparently, Barcelona Once Asked Robert Lewandowski To Stop Scoring Goals

Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski was once directly asked by the club president not to score more goals. (X/@FCBarcelona)

JAKARTA - Striker Robert Lewandowski's career at Barcelona is coming to an end. Lewandowski's consistently high goal tally has led Barca to ask him to stop scoring. You know!

Yes, that story happened when Lewandowski made his debut in La Liga after being signed by Barca from Bayern Munich in 2022. At that time, Barca had to spend 45 million euros to acquire the Polish national team's goal machine.

Barca's move to sign Lewandowski was questionable because the player was already 34 and was expected to experience a decline in his sharpness. Furthermore, the club immediately offered him a three-year contract.

It's rare for players over 30 to get long contracts, as they usually receive one-year deals with a renewal for the following year.

Lewandowski may be a lethal striker at Bayern, but he was considered to have difficulty competing in La Liga, which has a high level of play like the German Bundesliga.

Lewandowski answered those doubters with his goals. In his debut season in 2022/2023, he scored over 20 goals. However, when he reached 23 goals, the club asked Lewandowski to stop scoring.

It wasn't about anything, but it was about money. Barca was no longer a wealthy club that could easily spend money. They had to tighten their finances due to mounting debt.

Even player recruitment was limited unless the club had sold players, especially those with high salaries. This led coaches like Xavi Hernandez and now Hansi Flick to opt for maximizing young players drawn from their own academy, La Masia.

Coincidentally, Barca's academy is truly elite and has consistently produced a string of talented players. They include Pau Cubarsi, Fermin Lopez, and of course, Lamine Yamal.

Outside of academy players, Barca could only bring in Dani Olmo and then loan Marcus Rashford from Manchester United.

Yes, Lewandowski was asked not to add to his goals so Barca wouldn't have to pay Bayern a 2.5 million euro bonus. This was revealed by Polish journalist Sebastian Staszewski.

Staszewski told Diario AS, as quoted by Football Espana, that the club president himself directly asked Lewandowski not to score more goals. Moreover, Barca had already secured the La Liga title.

"In the meeting, club president Joan Laporta directly asked him to stop scoring goals. The reason was, of course, economic. Barcelona would have to pay Bayern a bonus of 2.5 million euros if he scored 25 goals," Staszewski said.

"Since the league title was already secured, Barcelona asked him not to score more goals," he said.

Barca did not clarify whether the report was true or not. However, what is certain is that Lewandowski is indeed no longer scoring goals.

However, with 23 goals, he remains the top scorer in the competition and has won the Pichichi Trophy, an individual award given by the leading Spanish daily Marca to the top scorer in La Liga.

In his La Liga debut, Lewandowski immediately won the league title and the top scorer award. Lewandowski's contract expires at the end of this season, in June 2026. Barca has not renewed it.

Barca is eyeing Harry Kane, who also plays for Bayern. The scenario is similar to Lewandowski's, as Barca seeks to sign the England national team captain.