Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski talks scoring and positioning

Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski is among the most prolific scorers on the planet and has a number of ways to decimate the opposition. In a recent discussion, Lewandowski talked about how his positioning on the pitch plays a role in where he scores his goals.

“That’s a factor, definitely. I should be in the box, that’s where the most goals are being scored, that’s my position. Eighty per cent of the time, I will make the run. I don’t get many opportunities to shoot from distance,” Lewandowski recently told The Athletic. “But if someone else makes those deep runs into the box, I can remain in the second line and drop into the No 10 role. Before last season started, I thought that I have to try shooting from just outside the box more often. I know I can do it.”

As for what his approach is when determining the best way to attack, Lewandowski uses a simple rule of thumb.

“Outside the box, you need the power. Inside the box, I mostly use the instep, for precision,” Lewandowski said.

When asked about how he maintains such a deft relationship with Thomas Müller on the pitch, Lewandowski credited Müller’s intelligence.

“To me, it’s more of a question of the system we’re playing. In the past, Thomas often played on the right or left. In the last couple of seasons, he’s back in the center, as a No 10 or sometimes a No 8,” said Lewandowski. “You relate differently to each other on the pitch if you’re two, three, 10 or 20 meters away from each other. His game changes, my game changes. That’s the main difference. He’s an incredibly intelligent player who reads the game extremely well, which is hugely important at this level. He’s got a great sense of what might happen — and where.”