Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski aims to better his record of 30 league goals in a season and beat Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to the Bundesliga’s top-scorer title on Saturday.
His two-goal haul in Bayern’s thrilling 5-4 win over RB Leipzig last Saturday left Lewandowski one ahead of Aubameyang of Borussia Dortmund with one game left.
This season’s haul matches his personal best, set last term when he won the ‘Golden Cannon’ trophy — awarded to the Bundesliga’s top-scorer — for the second time having won the title in 2013/14 with 20 goals for ex-club Dortmund.
Lewandowski wants at least one more goal in Saturday’s final home game against Freiburg, while hoping Aubameyang fails to score for Dortmund at home to Bremen.
“I’m not thinking about ‘the Cannon’, my goal is to get 30 goals plus ‘x’ — when I score one more, then I have beaten my personal record, which is what I want to do,” Lewandowski told FCBayern.de.
On Saturday, Bayern will be crowned German league champions for the fifth season running when they bid farewell to Philipp Lahm, and Xabi Alonso, who both play their final game before retirement.
“Our biggest motivation should be to say goodbye to two legends, Philipp Lahm and Xabi Alonso — best of all with a good game and lots of goals,” added Lewandowski.
German magazine Sport Bild report Germany’s captain Manuel Neuer, currently sidelined with a foot fracture, will be club skipper next season to replace Lahm.
The 33-year-old Lahm has just announced he will become a father for the second time.
Meanwhile, Bayern say they are taking legal action against the Stuttgarter Zeitung newspaper for claiming midfielder Joshua Kimmich will leave at the end of the season.
The Stuttgart paper claim the German international, who is under contract until 2020, will leave for either ex-club RB Leipzig or Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, but Bayern have slammed the report.
“This is a monstrous fallacy,” fumed chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.
“This story lacks any foundation. Joshua Kimmich has a contract with FC Bayern until 2020 and will definitely play for the next season for FC Bayern.”
Kimmich returned from Euro 2016 as Germany’s first-choice right-back, but with Lahm playing that position for Bayern, Kimmich has started just 15 league games this season under Carlo Ancelotti.
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