Everything points to Robert Lewandowski making the move to Barcelona next summer. The center striker of Bayern Munich has, according to the German Sports1 reached an oral agreement with the Catalans on a three-year contract. That is a risk for the club, because Lewandowski will turn 34 on August 21 and will therefore already be almost 37 when his possible contract expires. “Age is not important,” Xavi said when Lewandowski’s name was mentioned at his press conference on Saturday.
Lewandowski finally broke off negotiations with Bayern this week, reported BILD already and will be confirmed on Saturday by technical director Hasan Salihamidzic. The Polish top striker will not renew his contract, which expires in mid-2023, and is preparing for a transfer to Barcelona. According to Sports1 Pini Zahavi, the agent of the veteran, has already reached an oral agreement with Barcelona. Bayern Munich are reportedly willing to bid farewell to top striker for €35 million, who has been a striker at the Allianz Arena since 2014.
It is expected that the negotiations between Barca and Bayern will not go too smoothly. Xavi did not want to directly comment on names on Saturday, but did speak about age when asked about Lewandowski. “I got Dani Alves (39, ed.) back and that went well,” said the Barcelona coach. “Today’s players take good care of themselves. They have dieticians, they work hard and take care of themselves. Look at Luka Modric, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alves.”
Xavi has strongly urged his leadership for the arrival of Lewandowski, Spanish media write. The coach said about this on Saturday: “I have made it clear what I want for next season to be able to perform to the maximum. We will see what can and cannot be achieved.” Xavi doesn’t consider it a huge risk to commit older players for a long time. “What is important to us is that an acquisition can deliver immediate performance. Age is not the first thing we look at, but performance on the field is.”