"Maybe if you signed for Blackburn, you would have won a Ballon d'Or!" – Robert Lewandowski trolled by Barcelona teammate in hilarious interview
Barcelona midfielder Ilkay Gundogan has quipped that Robert Lewandowski might have bagged a Ballon d'Or award if his rumored transfer to Blackburn Rovers went through early in his career.
Lewandowski, 35, has relished quite a sensational career in terms of both trophies and goals. He has lifted a total of 28 trophies, including a whopping 10 Bundesliga titles during his time at Bayern Munich.
As for his exploits in and around the penalty box, the right-footed number nine has found the back of the net 579 times in 802 games at club level. He is also Poland's all-time top-scorer with 81 goals so far.
During a recent video interview with Movistar+, Lewandowski quizzed the German about his professional career. He asked (h/t 90min):
"To which team was I supposed to go to, before the famous eruption of the Icelandic volcano [in 2010]?"
Gundogan, who joined Barcelona on a free switch after the end of his seven-year-long stint at Manchester City, asked the Pole (h/t BBC):
"I read it somewhere once, was it to Italy?"
Lewandowski, a two-time Best FIFA Player award winner, responded:
"No, it wasn't Italy. I wanted to see Blackburn Rovers at the time."
Moments later, Gundogan trolled his ex-Borussia Dortmund teammate:
"Maybe if you signed for Blackburn, you would have won a Ballon d'Or already!"
The Poland captain was taken aback and said to those off-camera:
"Did he just say that?!"
Earlier in 2020, the Barcelona striker failed to add the prestigious Ballon d'Or to his collection after the award's cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He netted 55 goals and laid out 10 assists in 47 games for the Bavarians, guiding his team to a treble in the 2019-20 season.
Barcelona manager Xavi gives latest update on Robert Lewandowski's recovery process
Earlier in October, Robert Lewandowski sustained an ankle issue in Barcelona's 1-0 UEFA Champions League group-stage win at Porto. He was replaced by Ferran Torres in the 34th minute of the contest.
Speaking ahead of his side's 1-0 La Liga victory against Athletic Bilbao on Sunday (October 22), Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez provided an injury update about the veteran. He said (h/t Mundo Deportivo):
"He has a very good feeling right now. He's a great leader and always goes forward, he wants to be there and he's hurting less and less every day. He always pulls himself forward."
So far this season, the 35-year-old has scored six goals and registered four assists in 10 matches across all competitions for the Blaugrana.