Report: Robert Lewandowski would have to “force” move to Barcelona to leave Bayern Munich

Robert Lewandowski’s contract situation at Bayern Munich has been cause for heightened speculation and, most recently, reports have circulated suggesting he’s entertaining a move to Barcelona this summer. Bayern’s front office is still yet to begin discussions with Lewandowski and his representatives for negotiations for a contract extension, but their relatively sour relationship with his agent, Pini Zahavi, isn’t making things any easier. Despite having not initiated any negotiations, Bayern’s front office has maintained that they want to do everything in their power to get Lewandowski to sign a new deal.

Per a report from Sport, Bayern’s number 9 would essentially have to “force” a move to Barcelona if he did, in fact, wind up leaving Bayern this summer. Contrary to what’s been said out of Munich, Sport also report that Lewandowski has only been offered a one-year extension, when he would want at least two years since he feels like he can continue to play at the highest level for as long.

With a contract that expires in June 2023, Bayern faces a crucial window in trying to get him to sign an extension for a player that they’ve deemed “untransferable.” Bayern will also need to really figure out just how long of an extension they want to give him and how much they want to pay him. Dietmar Hamann had recently expressed his concern with giving Lewandowski more than a two-year extension given his age (33 years old). He cited Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United at 37-years-old as an example of what could happen if too much is invested in a player of that stature that’s on the decline.

Of course, Zahavi is no stranger to pushing the boundaries when it comes to his handlings on Bayern players. He certainly won’t shy away from continuously shopping Lewandowski around the longer Bayern goes without starting contract negotiation discussions. He’s already done this in the past with Real Madrid when they were heavily linked with going in for the Polish ace. From his perspective, there’s no reason to ease off trying to get him to join Barcelona for a substantial fee this summer.

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Barcelona sporting director denies “agreement” with Lewandowski

Earlier this week, it had been reported out of Poland that Lewandowski had already agreed on a deal to join Barcelona that picked up traction very quickly. Despite the amount of sources that seemed to hop on board with that narrative, Barcelona’s sporting director Mateu Alemany quelled those claims.