As Barcelona romped past Viktoria Plzen with a 5-1 win, Robert Lewandowski stole the show with a stunning hat-trick on his Champions League debut for his new club.
With the Polish captain standing out more than any other player during the start of Europe’s elite competition this season, it is no surprise that his incredible showing was duly rewarded.
After his heroics against the Czech side, Lewandowski has been voted as the best player from matchday one of the 2022/23 Champions League campaign.
Aside from the hat-trick, it was the manner in which he took his goals that separated the ex-Bayern marksman from other possible contenders for the honour, such as Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
The irrepressible Lewandowski wins Player of the Week #UCLPOTW | @PlayStationEU pic.twitter.com/WpOgdsiApM
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 8, 2022
For his opener and the strike to seal his treble of goals, Lewandowski effortlessly curled the ball right into the bottom corner.
While his outstanding finishing came to the fore, the 34-year-old’s pinpoint positioning also stood out for his second, as he was perfectly positioned to head the ball home from a sublime Ousmane Dembele cross before he scored a third in the second half from the edge of the box.
All in all, it is hard to argue that any player in the Champions League outdid the evergreen goalscorer in the first gameweek.