Robert Lewandowski should be considered one of the best players in the world. He should be alongside the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Polish striker has been a dominant force in the Bundesliga for seven years now, and it seems like his performances are only recognized by a very narrow segment of football fans. He does not receive the same sort of recognition that Messi and Ronaldo do on a global scale.
No disrespect intended towards Ronaldo and Messi, but when it comes down to attacking contribution, Lewandowski can match them. Ronaldo has scored 22 goals this season for Real Madrid, and Messi has found the back of the net 38 times for Barcelona. Lewandowski is right there with them, having scored 33 goals for Bayern.
MILESTONE: Robert Lewandowski has now scored 100 goals for Bayern Munich in just 136 games for the club.
Crazy goalscoring record. pic.twitter.com/5khcdVnLuZ— Squawka Football (@Squawka) March 11, 2017
All of them are decorated with individual awards, however, one of the awards that Lewandowski is lacking in comparison to Messi and Ronaldo is the FIFA Ballon d'Or and UEFA Best Player in Europe awards.
Lewandowski is a two-time Bundesliga Top Goalscorer, and he was able to score 13 goals for Poland during the Euro 2016 qualifiers, making him the leading scorer in the process.
Robert Lewandowski world player of the year? Franck Ribery: "He would deserve it. He is crazy!" #FCBayern [BILD] pic.twitter.com/yvdtifXzkL
— Home Bayern (@HomeBayern__) March 13, 2017
He's also a six-time winner of the Polish Footballer of the Year award. So Lewandowski does have his individual recognitions, but why has he never finished higher than fifth in UEFA's Best Player in Europe award voting?
Lewandowski is only 28 years old, so time is still on his side. It would be surprising to see Cristiano Ronaldo win another Ballon d'Or after his latest, and it's anybody's guess as to how long Lionel Messi can continue to play at his own level.
It will really just be a matter of time for Lewandowski to reach the same level of recognition as Messi and Ronaldo. He is known as a player to be feared in the Bundesliga, and he's just a successful Champions League campaign away from being considered a finalist for a world player of the year award.
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