Kluivert sings Lewandowski’s praises

CHENNAI: Ever since his acrimonious exit from Bayern Munich earlier this summer, Poland’s Robert Lewandowski has further enhanced his reputation as one of the most feared strikers in the world at his new abode in Barcelona.

Pumping in goals for fun, the 34-year-old has quickly established himself as a key member of manager Xavi’s plans.

Among his growing list of admirers, he can count upon someone belonging to his own tribe in Patrick Kluivert with the former Blaugrana forward lavishing praise on the strapping Pole.

The 46-year-old Dutchman, who was in Mumbai recently as La Liga Ambassador for the screening of El Clasico, waxed lyrical about Lewandowski and also shared his thoughts on a range of topics in an interaction with DT Next.

Excerpts:

On how quickly Lewandowski adapted to La Liga

He (Lewandowski) made a seamless transition from Bundesliga and he shows every week that he can score and his form bodes well for the team. He has improved all facets of his game and what impresses me is his hard-working nature when Barcelona hasn’t got the ball. He is also making other players play better. That’s more my kind of player. I don’t think he needs to improve more and every defender knows his quality. My advice to him would be to remain steady and keep doing what he has been doing.

His thoughts on Barcelona manager Xavi

Xavi’s arrival has helped players train with passion again which was lacking before. Considering his stature, he has the freedom and time from the Barcelona president to build his own team in the league. It’s good to see them doing well in the league but unfortunately the season is over for them in Champions League.

How impressed he is with Gavi

Gavi is a fantastic young player but I think Barcelona needs to watch out because last year Pedri played a lot of games for the Spanish national team and got injured. I think if the same repeats with Gavi probably he will get injured as well so they should find the right balance in playing and giving him rest. They shouldn’t go overboard in making him play every game.

On whether Messi and Ronaldo’s absence makes El Clasico unappealing

The level of intensity has dropped a little bit in the absence of Messi and Ronaldo. They were both battling with each other for many years and now we have new players arriving. We know both Real Madrid and Barcelona always attract best players and it’s more about the team now whereas earlier only those two were making the headlines. El Clasico is a decisive game at the moment and the most-watched game in the world with more than 650 million viewers. The Milan derby, which I had also played with AC Milan, pales in comparison with this clash in terms of the passion and intensity. The Milan derby is like watching a black-and-white movie!

On Benzema proving his worth

Karim Benzema is one of the most important players for both Real Madrid and France at the upcoming World Cup. I’m not surprised that he won the Ballon D’Or as he enjoyed a tremendous season helping Real win the Champions League. He will make a big difference whether he is playing or not and his experience will stand him in good stead