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Barcelona have confirmed the agreement to sign Poland striker Robert Lewandowski from Bayern Munich for €50million, plus add-ons, on a four-year deal.
Lewandowski travelled to Miami to meet his new teammates on Sunday, the day after Barca confirmed they had struck an agreement in principle with Bayern.
Lewandowski subsequently passed his medical, with Bayern “officially” announcing his departure on Tuesday.
Barcelona soon confirmed the transfer details for the talismanic striker, who will have a €500m buyout clause.
The 33-year-old Lewandowski scored 50 goals across all competitions last season, the most across Europe’s top five leagues, as Bayern lifted their 10th Bundesliga title in a row.
Lewandowski broke Gerd Muller’s long-standing Bundesliga record by scoring 41 goals in a single season in the 2020-21 campaign, while his 43 league goals in 2021 serve as the record for a calendar year in Germany’s top tier.
Lewandowski’s 312 Bundesliga goals are the second-most scored by any player in the competition’s history, behind Muller (365), while he leaves Bayern having accumulated 344 goals and 57 assists across 375 appearances in all competitions.
Though Julian Nagelsmann was reluctant to let Lewandowski leave, he suggested Bayern’s game plan will become more “unpredictable” after his departure.
“When someone like Robert plays up front, you play more crosses,” he told reporters on Bayern’s pre-season tour in the United States. “The way we’re going to play will change. It’s a new Bayern Munich.
“It will be a challenge – and I like challenges. It’s good for everyone, we have to find new ways and be creative.
“In the past, it might have been easier for the opponent to prepare for our game. Now we’re going to be even more unpredictable.”