Robert Lewandowski sets high bar for success in first press conference following MLS move

Ahead of Major League Soccer’s imminent return to action following its FIFA World Cup break, the Chicago Fire’s latest blockbuster signing, Robert Lewandowski, sat down with reporters to address his recent move from Barcelona.

With their next game just two days away, when they travel north of the border to take on ex-Bayern Munich teammate Thomas Müller’s Vancouver Whitecaps, 37-year-old Lewandowski admitted he spoke with both the ex-German international and another of their former Bundesliga colleagues, Bastian Schweinsteiger, prior to deciding to head to the MLS.

Like both Lewandowski and Müller, 41-year-old Schweinsteiger headed Stateside late in his career, spending his final three seasons in Chicago after a brief stint with Manchester United.

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Poland’s all-time leading scorer said ahead of his debut that he is confident he will be able to adapt to head coach Gregg Berhalter’s high-pressure system, noting that he’s seen clear steps forward from the team since the former U.S. Men’s National Team boss was appointed in late 2024.

“I saw that the team has developed a lot the last months if you compare this season and the last season,” Lewandowski said. “I’ve seen that they're doing a great job and I hope that I can help my teammates, my new colleagues, to play better and win more games.

“And I know that altogether we can achieve our goals. And always when I start at a new club, always in front of me is to win some titles. It's the same this way.”

Lewandowski is set to lead the line alongside former Belgian youth international Hugo Cuypers, who currently leads the MLS with 13 goals in 11 games for a Fire side which sits third in the Eastern Conference. Inter Miami currently sits second, five points ahead of Chicago, while Nashville SC has a two-point cushion over Lionel Messi and Co.

“Part of what we've been doing these last months is working through what it would look like in a two-striker system, and we did that on purpose to get a lot of video, a lot of footage,” Berhalter explained. “It's not too common to play two strikers nowadays but weve been working hard on what that looks like around the penalty box, what the combinations look like, how to affect the backline with two strikers, and we have some really good data points.

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“We’ve been scoring goals lately. We’ve been really picking apart the backline, and we don’t see any reason why that can’t continue with Hugo and Robert on the field together. They’re both high-quality players.

“They’re both players that can take advantage of a small amount of space, can finish under pressure, can finish in small spaces, so we’re actually really excited about this possibility, and we think that it can be a great combination.”

Aside from his abilities on game day, Berhalter was also clearly excited about the impact that the UEFA Champions League winner will have on the training field, in the locker room, and on their next generation of stars.

“I think that when we look back on Robert’s time here, there's a couple of ways that we can evaluate success,” he said. “I think the first thing is within the locker room: What type of influence does he have on his teammates.

“The players get to play with a player who's played at the absolute highest level for over a decade and a half, and you don’t get that every day. And we hope that it permeates throughout the entire club.

“The academy kids, when they’re walking by the training field and they get to see Robert work, that something rubs off on them. So, really a big effect on the entire club.”

Lewandowski joins having won league titles in each of the three countries he has played in to date, along with at least one domestic cup in each. Looking ahead, while Chicago was knocked out of the U.S. Open Cup in the Round of 16, they remain in the hunt for the Leagues Cup as well as the MLS Cup - although they face plenty of tough opposition with the likes of Messi’s Miami, Müller’s Whitecaps, Son Heung-min’s LAFC, and fellow new arrival Antoine Griezmann’s Orlando City SC among others.