Bundesliga
"Lewandowski is in the same category as Ronaldo and Messi" – Werner
RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner believes that his Bayern Munich counterpart Robert Lewandowski is on the same level as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Werner was speaking at Germany’s pre-match press conference ahead of their UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier against Belarus. and and was asked about the Bundesliga’s top scorer race. The Leipzig man is currently on 11 goals from as many games, second to Lewandowski, who has a record-breaking 16, having found the back of the net on each of the first 11 matchdays.
“You can’t score every game unless your name is Robert Lewandowski,” Werner joked. “When I score two in Berlin, he scores two against Dortmund and I ask myself when he’ll stop. He’s currently in the same category as Ronaldo and Messi.”
Watch: All of Lewandowski's goals so far in 2019/20
Such form has the Poland captain leading the race to end the Argentine’s three-year stranglehold on the European Golden Shoe, which he has won six times in his career – Ronaldo has claimed it three times.
In all competitions, Lewandowski not only has more goals than any other player from Europe’s top five leagues in 2019/20 (23), but he in fact leads the standings for the entire 2019 calendar year.
The Bayern forward has netted 41 goals for his club over the past 11 months, which is two more than Messi for Barcelona despite playing one game less.
Werner is 15th in those standings with 21 goals in 2019, three ahead of Ronaldo.
Watch: Werner's hat-trick of goals and assists against Mainz
The 23-year-old puts the high-scoring start to this Bundesliga campaign down to a change in mentality among clubs.
“A lot of teams want to play in a more attacking manner and would rather win 4-3 instead of 2-0,” the striker explained. “The game is getting faster and faster and we have more chances. That plays into our hands as strikers.”