Lewandowski and Kane, Two of the Best Strikers Who Have Lost Their Sharpness

DBasia.news – There is no denying that Harry Kane and Robert Lewandowski are the two best strikers in the world right now. In total, they scored 81 goals last season for their respective clubs.

Kane, the England captain, won the Premier League golden boot for the third time together for Tottenham. Meanwhile, Lewandowski broke Gerd Muller’s 49-year-old record for most goals in a single Bundesliga season.

It’s no wonder that many expect these two to continue their incredible sharpness into Euro 2020. However, in their first appearance in the tournament, their performances were far from satisfactory.

“You can hardly tell if Lewandowski plays or not,” ITV commentator Emma Hayes said as quoted by Eurosport.

When Poland was defeated by Slovakia, Lewandowski was barely visible. He had just five shots in 90 minutes, three of which were blocked and two missed.

Lewandowski’s minor form came 24 hours after Kane made one of his quietest appearances for England. In the match against Croatia, Kane only got one chance. In that match Kane recorded only 26 touches, the least in the England squad.

Of course, one cannot draw conclusions from just one match. After all, these two are undoubtedly still in the world-class category.

For Kane, the difference between club and national team is obvious. He has even scored just two goals in his last 10 appearances for the Three Lions over the past 12 months. This coincided with a glorious period for Spurs.

Far from being just a goalscorer, the 27-year-old also registered the most assists in the Premier League last season in a slightly more drawn-in role.

Unfortunately this hasn’t quite translated to his performances for England so far. Against Croatia he tried to drop deeper, but was often stuffed by his team-mates in that position. Some say Kane has been drained with Spurs with a busy schedule of matches.

Lewandowski’s problem is no less frustrating.

“You have to give credit to Slovenia,” former Netherlands midfielder Nigel De Jong told ITV. “Every time the ball came to Lewandowski, he was surrounded by three or four players.”

At Bayern, Lewandowski was surrounded by other quality players. Conditions that made Lewandowski’s job easier, especially in finding the space needed in certain games. Without the support of the rest of the team, Lewandowski is isolated.

Imagine if Bayern’s opponents put two to four players to guard Lewandowski. Other players like Leroy Sane, Serge Gnabry, Kingsley Coman, and Thomas Muller will move freely.

Poland unfortunately do not have many players who can provide a consistent threat. As a result the opponent can focus almost completely on preventing Lewandowski from receiving the ball.

Poland coach Paulo Sousa may have to rethink his attacking approach in the upcoming games, working harder to stretch the opposition defense to free up his star players.

One thing is for sure, both players will no doubt be able to get out of trouble. This is if you look at the quality of both. The question is how fast?