A match was planned between the superstar and former Bayern Munich teammate Thomas Muller and the Western Conference leader Vancouver Whitecaps. But the match was postponed due to poor air quality due to wildfires in Canada, meaning Lewandowski’s debut will have to be delayed.
But the big moment has finally arrived, and the stakes are just as high when the Fire visit Eastern Conference contender Inter Miami on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET | Apple TV).
Legendary Lewandowski
After a glittering European career that included spells at Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich and Barcelona, Lewandowski chose Chicago as the next step in his remarkable career.
One of the greatest strikers of his generation, Lewandowski will now lead Fire’s line. He will don the No. 9 jersey as Chicago looks to have a strong first season under head coach Gregg Berhalter that has seen them return to the Audi MLS Cup playoffs for the first time since 2017.
And although he has yet to take to the pitch for his new club, he is already setting the standard.
“One thing I can tell you about Robert is his work rate is tremendous,” Berhalter said. “When you think about a guy coming into the team who’s been jet-lagged all last week and he’s pushing the guys in practice, we’re doing fitness, he’s pushing it and then he’s doing the extra work.
“You can understand why he was a professional and why in the last 15 years he has scored more goals than anyone in Europe because he is an absolute professional on the pitch. He was of high quality in training, scoring goals and looking like a great player.”
Kuypers moves on
While a deal has not been officially agreed upon, Berhalter confirmed that striker Hugo Kuypers, who currently leads the MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi with 13 goals, will leave the club to head to LIGA MX side CF Monterrey.
“Hugo came to us and expressed a desire to move to another location, and it turned out to be a good deal for us,” Berhalter confirmed. “We knew there were a few things going on, and by the way, the deal isn’t done yet. It’s still being finalized, but we have an agreement in principle.”
Berhalter added: “As for the suitors for Hugo, Monterrey was the club that came to us and was the only club that came to us. And we dealt with them. We talked to Hugo about his wishes and this was the team he wanted to join and we made a deal.”
Luckily for Fire fans, who have 629 goals and 159 assists in their career, as well as dozens of trophies, it would be hard to think of a better replacement for their Belgian number nine than Lewandowski.
“If you look at our team right now, it’s the same thing, except Robert has replaced Hugo. And until this moment everything was fine with us. You would think from that equation that we would be better,” Berhalter said.
“But I don’t think that stops us from wanting to be even better. We were happy to play with Hugo and Robert and see how it worked, and we’re also excited to explore a different path.”
Miami challenge
Lewandowski’s debut will be an immediate test as the Fire face the reigning MLS Cup presented by Audi champions Inter Miami.
Even though Argentine superstars Lionel Messi and Rodrigo De Paul will reportedly miss the match following their World Cup final defeat to Spain on Sunday, Berhalter is still expecting a tough match.
“I have a lot of respect for Inter Miami. They have a great team,” praised the Chicago head coach. “They will probably be missing a couple of players in Messi and Rodrigo De Paul, although you never know with Messi and De Paul.
“…They have great players and they’re champions for a reason because they have a good mindset, a good mentality, they compete. For us, it’s a question of how do we take advantage of some of their weaknesses, and that’s what we’re going to take advantage of.”
Regardless of the opponent, Lewandowski is expected to be heavily relied upon as the Chicago Fire, third in the Eastern Conference, continue to challenge for trophies.
“We expect him to be the focal point of our attack,” Berhalter concluded. “And we want to surround him with players who can help him have the most success and help the team have the most success.”