Manchester United closed an agreement with Robert Lewandowski in 2012, when the Pole was already a star in the Bundesliga. The FC Barcelona forward admitted to having said yes to the Red Devils that year, after scoring 30 goals and 12 assists in 47 games with Borussia Dortmund in what was his first great season as a 'killer'.
The team led by Jürgen Klopp won the double (league and cup), while 'Man U' closed the season without titles. In an interview with Rio Ferdinand for the former English centre-back's 'Rio Meets' podcast, 'Lewy' explained how his arrival to the team that Sir Álex Ferguson was still managing at that time was cut short, with Ferdinand as one of the untouchables at the back.
"I spoke to the president of Dortmund, he told me that they needed me and that they were not going to sell me to Manchester United because I was very important to them," explained the 36-year-old striker. Despite the "no" to the 'red devils', Borussia ended up transferring the '9' to Bayern Munich two years later, in 2014, a decision that greatly bothered the 'negriamarilla' fans.
Lewandowski still does not understand the decision on the 2020 Ballon d'Or
On the other hand, Barça's '9' broke his silence about the frustration of not winning the Ballon d'Or in 2020 or 2021, despite his fantastic performance with Bayern Munich. The Pole closed 2019/20 with 55 goals and 10 assists in 47 games, a fundamental contribution for the Bavarians to win the treble that season.
In the following season, 'Lewy' maintained a similar scoring average, with 47 goals and 9 assists in 40 official appearances. Despite this, 'France Football' decided to suspend the Ballon d'Or gala in 2020 due to the covid-19 pandemic and, in 2021, Leo Messi was chosen after his consecration with Argentina in the Copa América.
"At that time (2020) I didn't understand why. All the leagues were being played, the Champions League was being played... I know that football sometimes works like politics, because if you have football, you have a business. And if you have a business, you have policies," Robert argued. However, he admitted that he would gladly accept the award if the French magazine decided to give it to him, admitting the mistake of suspending the award that year.