At Ronaldo's age, Messi will find it tough to maintain goal-scoring level, claims Lewandowski

The Bayern Munich striker believes Lionel Messi would not be able to sustain the goalscoring level he has shown in the coming years, in comparison to Cristiano Ronaldo.

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Robert Lewandowski, who recently bagged FIFA The Best Men's Player 2021, has been a phenomenon by breaking records on the field for Bayern Munich and cementing a legacy for himself, leaving legendary players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi behind with exceptional performances of late.

Despite constant comparison between the three superlative forwards over the last two seasons, the Poland international continues to be a massive fan of both Ronaldo and Messi. However, Lewandowski, who recently equalled the Manchester United legend's most goals scored in a calendar year record, believes Lionel Messi would not be able to sustain the goalscoring level he has shown in the coming years, in comparison to Ronaldo.

Both Ronaldo and Messi have struggled to put up a performance worthy of their legacy for Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain recently. While the Portuguese struggles to stamp his authority after returning to Old Trafford from Juventus, the Argentine has scored only one Ligue 1 goal for PSG this season after having a runaway success at Barcelona.

In an interview with Polish outlet Pilka Nozna, the Bayern Munich forward was asked about the drop in Ronaldo and Messi's performance in recent times. Talking about the Manchester United striker's stint at Old Trafford this season, Lewandowski noted that Cristiano Ronaldo has moved from having an impossible number of goals to 'just' very good numbers.

"Cristiano is three and a half years older than me and still scores a lot. But he changed the club; he changed the tactics, and his team is not always successful. When his team regains its balance, he can return to score goals. He used to have great numbers, impossible numbers. Today they are 'just' very good numbers. Probably he won't score 60 goals in a year anymore, but with 30 and 40, he still makes a difference," Lewandowski was quoted as saying by the Polish publication.

As far as Lionel Messi is concerned, Lewandowski made a bold assessment of the legendary Argentine's future stating the PSG forward will find it hard to keep racking up the number of goals he was so far. "The expectations on him are quite different. Messi is a different type of player. At Cristiano's age, it will be more difficult for him to stay at his goalscoring level," said the 33-year-old.

It is worth noting that Ronaldo is three-and-a-half years older than Lewandowski, while Messi is just one-and-a-half years older. Lewandowski, who has been with Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich since 2014, has scored 226 goals in 239 appearances across all competitions.

Meanwhile, talking about his journey, the Polish striker said that he follows Ronaldo's fitness path of taking good care of his health. Lewandowski believes his best days are yet to come. Upon being asked if his peak is behind him, the Bayern Munich forward said, "No, it does not. I have better performance test results now than last year. In light of the data, it looks like my top form is still about to come. I feel better than two years ago."

"My age blurs the picture of my physical condition. For 12 years or so, I have been working hard to not end my career at this age, but to continue developing and pushing my limits. I think I've managed to do that," the 2021 FIFA The Best winner concluded.