Ewa Pajor: How Barcelona’s Star Became Poland’s Captain and Goal Machine

‎She stars for Barcelona and leads the Polish national team as captain but this isn’t Robert Lewandowski.

‎It’s Ewa Pajor, last season’s Liga F top scorer and recent winner of the Gerd Müller Trophy alongside Viktor Gyökeres.

‎Pajor enjoyed a sensational campaign, netting 46 goals in 49 appearances a record that highlights both her ruthless finishing and remarkable consistency.

‎Her goals propelled Barcelona to domestic triumph while also elevating her status on the international stage, confirming her place among the most prolific and feared forwards in world football.

‎“Ewa, follow your dreams and train hard,” said Ewa Pajor a few days ago in Paris as she accepted her award.

‎In her thank-you speech, she mentioned that she’s just a girl from a small Polish village.

‎Yet this “girl from a small Polish village” has achieved a lot not only for Polish women’s football, but for the women’s game as a whole.

‎When she was eight, she began playing with boys at the local club Orleta Wielenin. By fifteen, she had joined Medyk Konin’s senior team in Poland’s top league, becoming the youngest player ever to do so.

‎A year later, she earned a call-up to the national team and made her debut against the Czech Republic. Not only did she play, she scored in the 84th minute.

‎It was clear to Europe’s top clubs that such an exceptional talent wouldn’t stay under the radar for long.

How she started her global career

‎And indeed, it didn’t take long before Ewa moved to Germany to play in the Bundesliga. Specifically to Wolfsburg, one of the giants of women’s football seven league titles and two Champions League trophies.

‎Pajor spent nine years with the club, securing five Bundesliga titles and nine domestic cups. Yet the Champions League remained out of reach.

‎Last season, Pajor joined Barcelona, a club brimming with world-class talent, including Ballon d’Or winners Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas.

‎Pajor’s dream had come true, and her football idol has long been Polish legend Robert Lewandowski, who welcomed her warmly to the club.

‎There was a risk that the Polish star might get lost among the Spanish talent, but fortunately, that wasn’t the case.

‎In her first season, she became the league’s top scorer. In the Barcelona derby against Espanyol, she came off the bench yet still scored a hat-trick, celebrating in the style of her idol Lewandowski.

‎She became the first-ever player to score a hat-trick in El Clásico against Real Madrid. With her new club, she celebrated a domestic treble.

‎Sadly, the Champions League remained elusive. Barcelona had won it in 2023 and 2024, and at that time Ewa was still with Wolfsburg; in fact, Wolfsburg lost the 2023 final to Barcelona.

‎In 2025, it looked like the Catalan giants might win a third straight Champions League, but Arsenal broke that run, bringing the trophy back to England after 18 years.

‎Despite all her success, the greatest triumph still evades Ewa Pajor.

‎Perhaps luck will finally smile on her in 2027, when the Champions League final is to be hosted in her home country, Poland.