Germany's goal machines to clash in Der Klassiker
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The Bundesliga's goal-scoring titans are set to clash on Sunday when Robert Lewandowski of Bayern Munich runs out against Borussia Dortmund, who have Gabon goal-machine Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in their ranks. Between them, the fleet-footed strikers have bagged 19 Bundesliga goals after seven matches this season and are battling for the Torjägerkanone (Golden Cannon) - the award handed to the Bundesliga's top-scorer.
Aubameyang has scored in each of Dortmund's seven games this season, a Bundesliga record, while Lewandowski has netted a mind-blowing ten goals in his last three games. The Poland hot-shot sent league records tumbling by grabbing five goals in just nine second-half minutes last week when he came off the bench to almost singe-handedly thrash Wolfsburg in a 5-1 defeat.
He then passed the mark for 100 Bundesliga goals with two more in Bayern's 3-0 win at Mainz last Saturday and claimed a hat-trick in Tuesday's 5-0 win against Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Champions League.
"He's on an amazing run and he's had an unbelievable week," said Bayern's captain Philipp Lahm, who half-joked that he expects a hat-trick from Lewandowski in every match. "A striker like Lewandowski doesn't need any encouragement."
The Poland striker has already claimed 17 goals for both club and country this season and threatens to score more in Sunday's Bayern-Dortmund clash, which the German media dub Der Klassiker. The goal-ace has earned the nickname 'Lewangoalski' in Germany and his attitude lends to the moniker Mr. Nimmersatt - Mr Never Satisfied.
"You must always want to score more goals, always play better. You can never just think that you have achieved enough," he said after Bayern needed just 28 minutes to take a 4-0 lead at home to Zagreb - a new Champions League record.
Not to be outdone, Aubameyang took his tally to nine goals from seven league games - while Lewandowski has ten from his six games - in the 2-2 draw against Darmstadt last Sunday and is eyeing more against Bayern. When asked whether he can overtake Lewandowski in the Bundesliga scoring chart this season, Aubameyang chuckled: "That will be difficult, my friend".
Apart from Bayern's Thomas Muller, who has scored a perfectly respectable six goals in seven matches, Gabon's Aubameyang seems the only one capable of denying Lewandowski this season's Golden Cannon. The 26-year-old struck a brace - his second of the campaign - against Darmstadt to continue his own remarkable run of form.
"Scoring goals does me good," said Aubameyang, who was rested for Dortmund's UEFA Europa League game at PAOK Saloniki on Thursday. "As a striker, it's my job to score and I'm very happy about that."
Of all the big name forwards to have played in the Bundesliga, including Lewandowski, no other player has scored in each of the seven games at the start of a German league season. The next club record on Aubameyang's horizon is held by Lewandowski himself.
The Polish forward scored in 12 successive league matches for Dortmund in the 2012/13 season. Aubameyang is currently on nine, stretching back to last season, and at the current rate, the 26-year-old will surpass the 20-goal target he set himself for this season.
He famously donned a Batman mask after scoring against rivals Schalke, last February, while Marco Reus wore a Robin mask after Dortmund's dynamic duo both scored in the 3-0 home win. And with Bayern's 100 per cent start to the season so far, Dortmund will need all their heroes to be on form at the Allianz Arena.