Mario Gómez: Lewandowski is the most complete striker in the world

Robert Lewandowski's hunt for Gerd Müller's age-old record is electrifying the Bundesliga this season. The Pole is just one goal short of matching the 40-goal mark set by Der Bomber in the 1971/72 season. In an interview with FCB's club magazine "51," Bayern legends explain what makes Lewandowski special - and why he can make history this season. In the first part of this series, Mario Gómez has his say. The striker played for the German record champions from 2009 to 2013, winning the treble in 2013 amongst other titles. In total, Gómez scored 170 goals in 328 Bundesliga games.

Part 1: Mario Gómez on Robert Lewandowski

"We strikers always want to score a goal. That's just the way we were born. For us, there's no greater feeling on the pitch than scoring a goal. I had that feeling as a little kid when I was playing, and later in training and in games. And I think it's similar with Lewy. He's a striker through and through. When I met him by chance recently, I said to him: 'You're one of those exceptional players who age like fine wine. Like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimović.'"

Admiration for Lewandowski's versatility

"I trust him to continue playing at this level for another four or five years. It wasn't like that for me in my mid-30s. I was a striker who lived on my dynamism, on the first few yards of pace, on power. Lewy is completely different. He has everything in his repertoire. He's not just a sprinter, he's the most complete striker in the world. It's crazy how easy he makes scoring goals look. I was at Bayern for four years myself and know how hard it is in reality."

"The fact that he is chipping away at Gerd Müller's record in a season without much of a pre-season and under extreme strain is quite remarkable. It shows that he is a consummate professional with an incredible understanding of his own body. I expected the 40-goal mark to fall at some point. Bayern have dominated the Bundesliga for years, just like Barcelona and Real Madrid in Spain - and there Messi has scored 50 goals in a season, Ronaldo 48. I wish Lewy many more goals, because you can't replace that feeling with anything."

Lewandowski is on the verge of breaking the record after a hat-trick against Gladbach on Saturday: