Robert Lewandowski says he wants Bayern Munich to sign off Pep Guardiola’s three years as head coach with the Champions League trophy, ahead of tomorrow semi-final, first-leg, at Atletico Madrid.
Bayern face Diego Simeone’s Atletico at Madrid’s Estadio Vicente Calderon stadium, with the return leg at the Allianz Arena on May 3, in their bid to reach the Champions League final on May 28. Should Bayern reach the final in Milan, it could be Guardiola’s last game in charge of the Bavarian giants before coaching Manchester City next season.
Bayern are bidding to win the treble and will be confirmed as the first team to win a fourth consecutive German league title if they beat Borussia Moenchengladbach at home on Saturday. They also face Bundesliga rivals Borussia Dortmund in the German Cup final in Berlin on May 21. Bayern have exited the Champions League in the semi-finals in the last two seasons under Guardiola’s stewardship.
“It would be amazing if we could bid farewell to Pep Guardiola by winning the Champions League - it would be the icing on the cake after all the time we’ve had together at Bayern,” Lewandowski told uefa.com.
“I hope it happens. Everyone chooses their own path, their own direction - and everyone knows that when one door closes, another opens. But we want to win every single match until the end of our time with Guardiola. We want to be celebrating until the end.”
Having won the Champions League twice with Barcelona, in 2009 and 2011, Guardiola hopes to sign off with Bayern by bringing the trophy to Munich.
Having scored 38 goals this season, Lewandowski is relishing facing Atletico’s back four which has conceded only 16 goals in the Spanish League this season.
“They have the best defence in the Spanish Liga,” said Lewandowski, who famously scored four goals in the 2013 Champions League semi-final win over Real Madrid for ex-club Borussia Dortmund.
Robert Lewandowski
