Robert Lewandowski reveals Pep Guardiola role in his Barcelona move

The Pole played under Pep Guardiola for three seasons at Bayern Munich between 2013 and 2016.

Robert Lewandowski has disclosed how his experience of working with Pep Guardiola at Bayern Munich influenced his decision to join Barcelona.

The 33-year-old striker ended a glory-laden stint at Bayern Munich for a new challenge at Barcelona in July by completing a transfer worth €50 million to the LaLiga club.

There was interest from other teams, such as Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, but a Camp Nou move was ‘the only option’ as far as Lewandowski was concerned after a spell under former Barca manager Guardiola.

“Guardiola’s philosophy and his style for caring for and managing the team was like bringing Barcelona to Bayern Munich,” he told Polish outlet Meczyki.

“Xavi [Hernandez] is very similar to Guardiola. They were both sixes, and they worked together. They think about football in the same way. With that memory [of working with Guardiola] in mind, Barcelona was the only option for me. It was great preparation.

“I didn’t talk to Guardiola before signing. But when I was with him at Bayern it was like a great preparation to come to Barcelona one day. All the staff was Spanish, and there were eight Spanish players. During that period, I had a very good relationship with Thiago [Alcantara] and Javi Martinez. Both of them congratulated me when I signed for Barcelona.”

Barcelona begin their La Liga campaign at home to Rayo Vallecano this coming Saturday.