How Robert Lewandowski Fared in His Chicago Fire, MLS Debut

The newest MLS superstar failed to live up to the hype in his debut against a Lionel Messi-less Inter Miami.

Robert Lewandowski made little impact in his first MLS minutes. | Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

Robert Lewandowski hit the pitch in an MLS match for the first time on Wednesday night, opening up the new chapter of his career with the Chicago Fire in a 3–2 loss to Inter Miami in the searing heat of south Florida. 

After missing out on his scheduled debut last week against former teammate Thomas Müller and the Vancouver Whitecaps due to dangerously smoky conditions in Chicago, he underwhelmed in his first match a week later.

Despite joining as the club’s most significant signing after a long-rumored process, he failed to make a massive difference, falling short of the scoresheet and sparking concerns after the club opted to sell 29-year-old MLS Golden Boot leader Hugo Cuypers in order to allow more opportunities for the former Bayern Munich and Barcelona star.

While the 37-year-old Polish striker struggled to produce, another former Barcelona star shone, as 39-year-old Luis Suárez scored a brace to secure the win for Miami, turning back the clocks in a way Lewandowski couldn’t manage in his first MLS minutes.

Here’s a closer look at how Lewandowski fared in his debut and how he reacted.

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Robert Lewandowski vs. Inter Miami —How It All Unfolded at Nu Stadium

A Weird First Half

Just how everyone predicted! pic.twitter.com/tzmsY9ERnm

— Chicago Fire FC (@ChicagoFire) July 23, 2026

Lewandowski’s first half had goals, but not for him. Inter Miami opted to make a change in their starting goalkeeper role, swapping out 2025 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Dayne St. Clair in favor of Rocco Ríos Novo, the backstop who led them to MLS Cup last season. 

In the 18th minute, Lewandowski provided a light press against Ríos Novo, forcing the goalkeeper to make a pass out to his right to Ian Fray. After Fray failed to find an option ahead of him due to pressure from Chicago’s Jonathan Bamba, he passed it back to Ríos Novo, who missed the kick and allowed the ball to trickle over the line for an embarrassing own goal. 

Although Lewandowski didn’t have much to do with it, his early pressure forced Miami’s initial adjustment to build out from the flanks, rather than up the middle. By the end of the opening half, Lewandowski had one blocked shot in 19 touches, while generally playing as a later-arriving forward, looking to execute in spaces near the top of the penalty area. 

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Lewandowski Plays Deeper Than Expected

Robert Lewandowski (left) struggled against Yannick Bright’s (right) shutdown efforts. | Jared Lennon/Getty Images

After playing primarily as a pure No. 9 throughout his career, Lewandowski dropped deeper in the attacking setup for the Fire, despite lining up on the left side of a two-man strike force in the 4-4-2 alongside Maren Haile-Selassie. 

Early in the game, he showed positional awareness to create space for Haile-Selassie or for the overlapping wide runs from Bamba. A flick in the 37th minute nearly sent Bamba in on goal, while other opportunities saw him arrive late in the box looking for second balls or cutbacks from the touchline. 

While those moments made up the majority of his 62-minute showing, he had his only scoring opportunity in just the 14th minute, when he controlled the ball with five touches inside the box before firing a shot into a diving defender, never reaching the goal. 

Throughout the match, it seemed as though he was unfamiliar with Chicago’s setup and the runs he needed to make to find success in their system, which had been tailored to Cuypers’s outright striker role to which Lewandowski has yet to adapt.

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Lewandowski’s Defensive Effort

Robert Lewandowski didn’t have anything go his way in attack. | Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images

While he wasn’t able to get any standout chances for himself, there were glimmers of connections in attack transition for Lewandowski, who will need some time to adapt to both Bamba and Philip Zinckernagel’s runs in wide areas. 

Yet, his efforts defensively stood out as well, as he tracked back and pressed aggressively to win the ball before Miami were able to work it up the pitch through central channels. He finished the night with three defensive contributions, and the team opened up after he left the game midway through the second half.

It became evident that things would take time and that taking on the defending MLS Cup champions would be a challenge, given how attack-focused they can be, forcing opponents out of their tactical comfort zones, even without Messi. 

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How Lewandowski Reacted After His Debut

Robert Lewandowski will look for a more significant performance on the weekend. | Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images

Lewandowski revealed that he only expected to play 60 minutes in his debut, in what was his first game since playing a June 3 friendly for Poland against Nigeria. He also admitted that the week in between arriving from Europe and getting his first start was not a lot of time to prepare to play his best in a new setup.

“Before the game I knew I could play a maximum of 60 minutes,” Lewandowski said. “One week is not a lot of time to be ready. Before the game I tried my best to prepare. The game was tough for us. In the end, I think we made too many easy mistakes and Inter Miami scored the goals. So we have to keep working. I think for the next game, with more knowledge, it will be better.

“In football, you never have everything from the first day. You need to keep working. You need to play games to understand your teammates, how they play, the movements.”

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The Numbers That Explain Lewandowski’s MLS Debut

Luis Suárez (left) turned back the years in a way that Robert Lewandowski (right) couldn’t in his debut. | Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images

• Lewandowski did not find himself in many scoring positions and didn’t test the goalkeeper or even send a shot off target, putting up an underwhelming xG of 0.09.
• The Polish international was reliable in his passing, completing 16 of his 17 attempted passes, but few were able to open up any type of scoring opportunities.
• Once known for his tenacious pressing, the 37-year-old won only one of his five ground duels, allowing Inter Miami to maintain possession and canceling himself out of the play at several points.

Statistic	Tally
Minuted Played	62
Goals	0
Assists	0
Expected Goals (xG)	0.09
xG on Target (xGOT)	0.00
Expected Assists (xA)	0.04
Accurate Passes	16/17 (94%)
Chances Created	0
Big Chances Created	0
Shots on Target	0
Shots Off Target	0
Blocked Shots	1
Shot Accuracy	0/1 (0%)

*Statistics provided by FotMob

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