Bayern are top of the table at the halfway stage for the 24th time – and the most prolific scorer in Bundesliga history in the first half of a season has played a decisive role in this:
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Robert Lewandowski gave the Munich team an early lead in the 2-1 win over SC Freiburg, and at the same time set a new record with his 21st goal of the season. Never before has a player scored so many goals in the first half of a Bundesliga season.
Praise from Flick and teammates
“It’s an unbelievable [scoring] rate,” marvelled team-mate Leon Goretzka. And coach Hansi Flick also joined in with words of praise: “What he did last year, but also this season, is already outstanding,” said the Bayern coach, putting it simply but succinctly: “Robert is there up front to score goals. That’s why we’re really happy to have him.”
The Polish forward’s diligence to duty led to him surpassing Gerd Müller’s previous goalscoring best of 20 goals in the first half of the 1968/69 season. For decades, the nation’s former “Bomber” stood for unassailable goalscoring records in the German top flight, but Lewandowski has long been chasing Müller’s milestones. The 1974 World Cup winner’s 40 goals at the end of the 1971/72 season has yet to be matched even today, but the reigning World Footballer of the Year now has more than half of Müller’s goal tally in that famous year – after less than half of the season.
