Barcelona agree ?42.5m deal with Bayern for Lewandowski

Barcelona have agreed a deal with Bayern Munich for the signing of striker Robert Lewandowski for ?42.5m (EUR50m).

Lewandowski will fly to Spain on Saturday for a medical before signing his three-year contract, which contains an option for a further 12 months.

The Poland international had just one year remaining on his Bayern contract and had told the club he would not renew his deal.

Up until now the German champions had insisted Lewandowski was not for sale and turned down a EUR40m (?33.8m) offer from Barcelona last month.

However, Lewandowski’s departure would help Bayern to finance the signing of Matthijs de Ligt from Juventus, who have priced the centre-back at around EUR80m (?67.7m) plus bonuses, according to Sky in Italy.

Hasan Salihamidzic, Bayern’s sporting director, was in Turin on Monday to open negotiations for De Ligt with Juventus. The Dutchman has two years remaining on his Juve contract and is reported to have told the Italian club he is keen to move to Munich.

Chelsea have also been tracking De Ligt this summer as they try to replace Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, who both left on free transfers but are set to complete a deal for Kalidou Koulibaly.

Lewandowski: A goalscoring machine at Bayern

Lewandowski has been with Bayern since 2014 and has scored 344 goals for the club in 375 appearances across all competitions.

He has helped Bayern to eight Bundesliga titles in the last eight seasons, as well as three German cups, and has just been crowned the league’s top scorer for the fifth season in a row after netting 35 goals in 34 Bundesliga games in 2021/22.

Why Barcelona were so keen to sign Lewandowski

Sky in Germany reporter Marc Behrenbeck:

“Xavi desperately wants a world-class striker who can guarantee 30 or more goals a season. A two or three-year contract is in the making with a salary of about EUR35m to EUR40m (?30m to ?34m) a year.

“Barcelona are not able to pay high fees but high salaries. It was always a dream for Lewandowski to play in Spain – either Real Madrid or Barcelona.”

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