Celebrating Robert Lewandowski’s inaugural Gerd Müller Trophy win for best striker

Bittersweet.

Robert Lewandowski — now FC Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski — has won France Football’s best striker award, newly christened as the Gerd Müller Trophy, for the second consecutive year.

This year, the award was renamed for Bayern Munich's legendary, indomitable goal-scorer Gerd Müller, whose 50-year Bundesliga record — the one nobody thought would ever be touched — Lewandowski himself broke two seasons ago. The striker award itself is new, and Lewandowski has laid singular claim to the title, beating out the likes of Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema and Manchester City (by way of Borussia Dortmund)’s Erling Haaland.

For now, Lewy is king, and he’s showing no signs of letting up.

Of course, Bayern can at least claim some partial credit — Lewandowski’s 2022 resume includes the back-half of Bayern’s 2021/22 season, during which he once again claimed the Bundesliga scoring crown by finishing on 35 goals.

But he’s Barça’s man now. And after a whirlwind summer transfer window saga brought him to Spain, he’s shown that La Liga ain’t no thang and is picking up just where he left off.

It’s a great honor for a great player, and a light touch of irony, too. That the award now named for a Bayern player — whose legacy is now so entwined with Lewy’s story — is awarded to Lewy just as he himself trades his long-time Bayern jersey for another is a twist of fate. All the more so that his past and present teams, long-time Champions League nemeses, saw fate bring them together again this year (and to dramatic results).

And of course, for Lewy himself, the highest honor eludes him still — even though he 100%, absolutely, definitively should have won it in 2020, when he won the Champions League with Bayern. We haven’t forgotten, and it doesn’t seem he has, either:

Still, it’s a fitting recognition. Robert Lewandowski — one of the greatest strikers the world has ever seen, synonymous with the modern Bayern era. Congratulations on a well-deserved honor.

And personally, I hope he gets that Ballon d’Or someday.