Robert Lewandowski is fully recovered from his injury and in top condition to make a grand return. He has been training well this week and has convinced Hansi Flick, who has decided to grant him his wish in the Espanyol-Barça match. As the Polish player has been requesting in recent days, he will start in Cornellà to try to catch up with Mbappé in the race for the Pichichi of LaLiga.
Lewandowski doesn't throw in the towel against Mbappé
Before the start of the Espanyol-Barça match, the gap between Mbappé and Lewandowski has widened. The French forward has taken advantage of the Polish player's injury to catch up and overtake him in the Pichichi race. The last Clásico was key, where Robert didn't get any minutes and the Frenchman scored a hat-trick that only served to increase his personal tally.
While Robert Lewandowski is in second place with 25 goals, only 3 of them from penalties, Mbappé is first with 28 (7 from penalties).
With LaLiga nearing its climax, the Barcelona forward will try everything to win the Pichichi trophy. It's not an obsession, but he knows that, at his age, it will be extremely difficult to achieve it next season. The gap is only three goals between them, and there are three matches left: this Espanyol-Barça, Villarreal, and Athletic Club.
Lewandowski, going for Mbappé in the Espanyol-Barça
The FC Barcelona locker room has committed to "feeding him" offensively, so he can have a spectacular end to the season and surpass the French star of Real Madrid.
The first objective: Cornellà. Barça visits Espanyol with the mission of adding three points... and goals.
Lewandowski doesn't hide: he wants to score, he wants the Pichichi, and he wants to silence those who already considered him finished. And if that also serves to leave Mbappé without his first major individual title in Spain, even better.
In the Real Madrid environment, meanwhile, there is discontent. Mbappé's teammates are starting to get tired of everything revolving around the Frenchman, even in penalties. Barça knows this... and they will take advantage of it. It's complicated, but in this Espanyol-Barça, the Polish player's reconquest begins to try to take this individual trophy, as well as to celebrate the championship, once again, in Cornellà.