A famous commentary of the 1988 UEFA European Championship Final, also known as The Euros, still enthralls Holland fans and those who have been fans of the man who revolutionized football, the legendary number 14, Johan Cruyff.

The Dutch striker Marco Van Basten, nicknamed "The Swan of Utrecht", is widely regarded as one of the best strikers of all time. He was the top goalscorer at the Euros in 1988, the FIFA World Player of the Year in 1992, and the recipient of three Ballon D Or awards. A 6ft 2in center-forward known for his close ball control, attacking intelligence, impeccable headers, and spectacular strikes and volleys, he has netted 125 goals in 201 appearances for AC Milan, making him one of the most important players of the Rossoneri's prime.

But, this incredible talent was forced to end his career prematurely due to an ankle injury, at the age of only 30. Winning several accolades before turning 30, this injury was a huge blow to his career and since then, the footballing world has been looking for a striker to replicate him (a rebirth).

Now after almost 3 decades, the footballing world has been gifted with a very intelligent center-forward, a Polish and a Bayern Munich striker, Robert Lewandowski, known for his positioning, technique, heading, and finishing. Praised by many retired footballing greats, and also called as a ‘Machine’ by most football fans for his lethal finishing, he is one of the best if not the best striker in the penalty area. Though he has been excellent throughout his career, he reached his peak after the age of 30. After losing in the Champions League finals with Dortmund, he moved to Bayern Munich (Borussia Dortmund's arch-rivals) in 2013 and has been one of the best players at Allianz Arena. He has won several awards throughout his career and will undoubtedly win more trophies in the future.

Because of his playing style, which is almost identical to Van Basten's, he has been nicknamed the "rebirth of Van Basten". A few months ago he reached the milestone of 40 goals in a single season breaking Bayern’s legend Gerd Mueller’s record. He has around 550 goals for club and country and has an average G/P of 0.71, making him one of the best strikers and, according to some, the greatest striker of all time.

"I'd like to mention Robert, it's been a real honor to compete with him,"

Leo Messi said during the Ballon d Or ceremony for the 2020-21 season, in which Lewandowski finished second with 33 points less than Messi. Having one of his most successful campaigns in 2019-20, winning the Bundesliga, DFB Pokal, DFL-SuperCup, the Champions League, Club World Cup, and Uefa Super Cup under Hansi Flick who took over the German side when half of the 2019-20 season was over and the Bavarians had lost 5 goals to 1 at Frankfurt under coach Niko Kovac. In 6 months, he transformed Bayern into one of the most powerful football teams and marked the greatest victory stamp in its history when it defeated FC Barcelona 8-2. Lewandowski was the clear winner of the 2019-20 Ballon d Or until France Football decided to cancel the event due to the Covid 19 breakout.

For a 90s football fan, watching Robert Lewandowski play brings a smile to their face because he is the only player in the 21st century who resembles the one and only Marco Van Basten.

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