Robert Lewandowski Gets His Groove Back as Bayern Munich Down Schalke

Heading into Saturday's 3-0 victory over Schalke, Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski was experiencing a bit of a lull in form, at least by his lofty standards.

The Poland international had scored just two goals in his previous eight appearances. It was a decent tally by most standards, but a far cry from the goal-per-game ratio he had managed throughout the season prior.

Lewandowski's downturn in form was a long time coming, something that was foreseeable. He'd rarely had a rest all season, with Transfermarkt clocking him at just under 3,500 minutes played in all club competitions prior.

It's one of the few weaknesses of this Bayern squad, that they have only one striker. And despite all of the rhetoric surrounding Pep Guardiola's "total football" approach—in which defenders aren't defenders, and any player can fill any role at any time—Lewandowski has been a nearly ever-present part of the Bayern team.

Suffice to say, Lewandowski has needed a break for quite a while. And it's a break he got on Wednesday as he was left out of the starting lineup for Bayern's 2-2 draw with Benfica in the UEFA Champions League.

Having taken a 1-0 aggregate lead after the first leg, the Bavarians didn't need Lewandowski to lead the line in Lisbon, and he only played the final six minutes off the bench. It was a great opportunity to get some rest and recharge.

The short break seemed to work wonders for Lewandowski, who inspired Bayern to victory over Schalke.

The visitors did well to keep a clean sheet for the duration of the first half and beyond, but the striker would not be denied. He broke the deadlock on 54 minutes with a typical finish, taking the ball off his chest and pivoting before rifling home. And about 10 minutes later, he converted well from Rafinha's cross. Those two goals put Bayern on the front foot, and they never looked back. 

Despite scoring his 26th and 27th goals of the Bundesliga season on Saturday, it looks as though Lewandowski will miss out on Gerd Muller's record of 40 strikes in a season in Germany's top flight.

No matter what he does from now on, it seems that the damage to his scoring rate was done in the few weeks prior to Saturday's game: Just four matches remain, meaning he'd need to average more than a hat-trick in the remaining fixtures.

The record Der Bomber set in the 1971-72 season remains one of the most elusive superlatives in all of world football, one that Lewandowski will have to aim to challenge another year.

At the same time, a rejuvenated Lewandowski could do far more for Bayern than a few extra Bundesliga goals ever could. As long as he isn't out for personal glory, he can have his minutes regulated in the final four games of the league campaign and save his strength for the matches that will decide silverware.

Among these are potentially five: The two legs of the Champions League semi-final with Atletico Madrid, Tuesday's DFB-Pokal semi-final against Werder Bremen, and the possible finals of both competitions.

With their lead over Borussia Dortmund now standing at a commanding 10 points, the Bundesliga is all but wrapped up. A treble is still possible, but Bayern will probably need big performances from Lewandowski, their only striker, in the few tournament games that remain.

A bit of rest in midweek seemed to do the trick to Lewandowski, who roared back into form against Schalke. If his minutes are regulated and he's kept fresh, he could yet lead Bayern to a second treble in four seasons.

@Mr_Bundesliga