FC Barcelona continue to face the challenges of the 2023/2024 season head-on both on the field and away from it as well. The Catalan giants struggled against Getafe in their opening game, but one man arguably struggled more so than others.
Robert Lewandowski arrived at FC Barcelona from German Bundesliga outfit Bayern Munich last summer for a transfer fee of around €50 million as the total package. His first season at the Catalan club was quite successful, having won both the La Liga title and the Spanish Supercup, alongside having been the Pichichi winner and Barca’s top scorer in various competitions.
However, despite his otherworldly numbers in the first half of last season, Lewandowski seemed to have faced a decline in form over the second half of the campaign. Out of the 29 goals he scored within the 42 games he played in total, he had scored 18 of those in the first 20 games and only managed 11 goals from the remaining 22.
According to Spanish outlet SPORT, the player continues to struggle and is already on the edge as he is finding it increasingly difficult to find the back of the net. Rough tactics by his opponents have taken their toll, with the nobility of the Polish striker not being one to make a big fuss most of the time working at his own loss.
Moreover, given his advanced age, the responsibilities asked of him seem to be taking too much effort out of the 34-year-old, with the tactical setup of Barcelona requiring him to drop deep to help in build-ups, pressing, playing connecting hold up, and needing to score goals.
However, despite his obvious struggles, Barcelona could choose to give him rest in order to regain his strength and get some respite by deploying Spanish forward Ferran Torres, who has been impressing during the pre-season as a center forward.
Having accumulated 3 goals across the pre-season games, the Spaniard was the top scorer for Barcelona in that period and has since not been given the opportunity to showcase his newfound merit at the striker position during the official season.
It remains to be seen how Xavi Hernandez chooses to counter the struggles being faced by Lewandowski, and whether or not Ferran Torres has a part to play in whatever the Barcelona coach decides.
