July 20 – Barcelona have finally landed Polish super striker Robert Lewandowski for €50 million from Bayern Munich but not before Bayern boss Julian Nagelsmann launched a stinging attack on the Catalan club.
The 33-year-old had one year left on his contract with the German champions but has signed a four-year deal with Barca and joined his new team-mates in Miami as part of a four-match tour of the United States.
“I’m finally here. I’m delighted to be at Barca,” Lewandowski said. “The last few days have been very long, but the deal is done and now I can focus on a new chapter and challenge in my life.
“I’ve always wanted to play in La Liga and for the big clubs. “I’m here to help Barca get back to the top and win as many titles as possible.”
Lewandowski, who has a staggering buyout clause of €500 million, scored 50 goals in 46 games last season as he helped Bayern win a 10th straight Bundesliga title and has hit the net 344 times in 374 games for the club
In August 2021, Barcelona president Joan Laporta bemoaned the club’s mounting debts, reported to be €1.35 billion, and Nagelsmann questioned their spending power saying they were “the only club in the world that has no money but can buy every player”.
“It’s kind of weird and kind of crazy for me but at the end they find solutions. I don’t know how.”
In January, Barca brought in Ferran Torres for around £45 million and this summer’s spending has now exceeded £90 million following the arrivals of Lewandowski, Pablo Torre and Raphinha.
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