The Polish goal machine, who plays for Champions League winners Bayern Munich, has been nominated for the annual award alongside the likes of Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentina’s Lionel Messi.
The Pole is tipped to be among the frontrunners to pick up the coveted FIFA prize, which aims to select the best player in the world.
The award will be presented on December 17, with public voting on FIFA’s website open until Dec. 9.
Lewandowski, who captains Poland’s national team, was among the favorites for this year's Ballon d’Or, football's other major international annual award, but it was scrapped this year for the first time in its 64-year history because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The 32-year-old was at the start of last month named UEFA Player of the Year, a major European football honor adding to a long list of accolades for the Polish marksman.
The Pole scored 34 goals in the German Bundesliga last season and he also bagged 15 strikes in last season’s Champions League, where his Bayern Munich beat French side Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in the competition’s final in late August.
Lewandowski on Wednesday moved to joint third place in the all-time Champions League scoring charts, with a goal in Bayern Munich’s 3-1 win over Red Bull Salzburg, as his side booked its place in the competition’s round of 16 with two games to spare.
Robert Lewandowski scores for Bayern against Salzburg in the Champions League on Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2020. Photo: PAP/DPA/Sven Hoppe
With a total of 71 goals, Lewandowski is now the Champions League’s third-highest all-time scorer, jointly with Raul Gonzalez of Spain.
Lewandowski was in June crowned the top scorer of Germany's Bundesliga premier league in the 2019/2020 season, his fifth such trophy since he began playing in Germany in 2010.
The Pole in March last year became the highest-scoring foreign player of all time in the Bundesliga, moving ahead of Peruvian Claudio Pizarro.
(gs/pk)
Source: PAP, Reuters, bundesliga.com