Lewandowski has been largely behind Barca’s success this season. The Catalan club will now potentially have to finish the season without him.
La Liga Winner | Odds |
|---|---|
Barcelona | |
Real Madrid |
Odds courtesy of BetWinner. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.
Lewandowski’s Injury Could Derail Quadruple Push
As Barcelona push for the quadruple, the injury to Robert Lewandowski is far from welcome. Barca have already won the Spanish Super Cup. They’re in the Copa del Rey Final and the final four of the Champions League. They’ve got a commanding lead at the La Liga summit too.
So now is not a good time to be losing players, especially one so important to them. Lewandowski has scored 40 goals in 48 appearances this season. He still sits atop the scoring charts in La Liga and was in the running for the Champions League Golden Boot.
Those chances are over in the Champions League, while they’re hanging by a thread in La Liga. The bigger question for the team is how Barcelona will cope in his absence. Removing a 40-goal striker from any side will have a detrimental effect.
Barca still ground out a win in midweek as they beat Mallorca 1-0. Yet with just one goal to show for the whopping 40 shots they had, it was a little concerning. Their lack of clinical finishing was almost exposed too. Mallorca had a first-half goal disallowed for offside, so the stats don’t tell the entire story.
Three points papered over the cracks for Barca. That could be something bettors look to capitalise on in the closing stages of the season. They still hold a healthy lead over Real Madrid in La Liga but there were signs last night that suggested they may struggle without their talisman. Will the gap still be there when the two sides meet in La Liga on 11th May?
It’s a similar story in the Copa del Rey and the Champions League too. Barca are favourites to lift those two trophies but without their talisman - and facing much better opposition in the games that remain - bettors could perhaps bet against them.
One thing that could deter bettors from backing against Barca is their record without Lewandowski. Since moving to Barca, the Pole has missed 15 games across all competitions. The Spanish side have won 14 of them, so they’ve historically proved they can cope without him. Will that still be the case in the crunch matches to come?
Should Bettors Look at Top Scorer Markets?
If Barcelona continue to cope without Lewandowski, then the top scorer markets are the best way in for bettors. The Polish forward was already two goals off the pace in the Champions League scoring charts.
Those chances now appear over unless Lewandowski makes a miraculous recovery to feature again this campaign. If he does, then it will be in the very late stages of the season. He would only be able to win the Champions League golden boot with a hatful of goals if Barca reach the final.
His teammate Raphinha is perhaps a smarter pick in that race. Serhou Guirassy currently leads, but Dortmund are now out of the competition. Raphinha needs two goals to overthrow him from the summit. The Brazilian is averaging 4.1 shots per game in the Champions League, only four players are averaging more.
The picture in La Liga is much different. Lewandowski tops the charts with 25 goals. Only one player is going to realistically catch him and that’s Kylian Mbappe.
Mbappe averages around 0.8 goals per game in La Liga this term. If he keeps that average up over the last five games, he’d be worthy of four goals. That would be enough to win him the Golden Boot if Lewandowski doesn’t kick another ball this term.
Madrid’s fixtures aren’t the most favourable on paper. Most of their remaining games come against sides currently in the top half. That does cast doubt over whether he can overcome the current deficit. There is also the potential for Lewandowski to recover in time to play again this term.
It’s reported that he’s facing a minimum of three weeks on the sidelines. If that’s the case, he could return in time for Barca’s last two or three games. That could swing the top scorer race back in his favour. With such uncertainty, this is definitely a market to approach with caution.