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A direct free-kick goal is one of the most exhilarating sights in football. It requires a combination of skill, finesse and composure to execute a successful free-kick.
Free-kicks are hit with many different techniques. But in most cases, the free-kick taker needs to have enough height and curl on the ball to get it over the wall and sufficient dip to beat the goalkeeper. That is especially true for free-kicks close to the penalty box.
For those from further out, the free-kick taker needs to add pace as well as swerve on the ball apart from the other aforementioned requirements.
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Over the years, there have been several fine free-kick takers who have graced the beautiful game. These players include not only attackers and midfielders, but also defenders and even goalkeepers.
On that note, here's a look at the twelve players with the most free-kicks in the game's recorded history. Without further ado, let's get started:
#12 Cristiano Ronaldo - 57
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of only two active players to make this list. Widely regarded as one of the best players to have graced the game, the 36-year-old has scored goals galore.
A free-kick specialist, Ronaldo especially thrives on scoring from far out rather than from close to the box. Although his free-kick scoring prowess has seemingly dwindled in recent years, Ronaldo remains a threat from dead-ball situations.
Ronaldo primarily uses the knuckleball technique to take free-kicks, employing very little side spin to enable the airflow surrounding the ball to guide its trajectory. The combination of pace, absence of spin and unpredictable trajectory makes Ronaldo's free-kicks very difficult to save for goalkeepers.
Most of Ronaldo's free-kicks have come for Real Madrid (32), with 13 coming for his current club Manchester United.
#11 Lionel Messi - 58
Lionel Messi, like Ronaldo, has scored over 50 goals for club and country from direct free-kicks.
The six-time Ballon d'Or winner's free-kick-taking ability is a relatively new addition to his arsenal. But Messi has scored exactly 50 free-kicks in club football, all for Barcelona and another eight for Argentina. Almost half of these strikes have come in the last five seasons alone.
Messi employs a novel 'sprained-ankle' technique to hit free-kicks. That enables him to impart enough spin and curl on the ball to avoid the wall and beat the goalkeeper.
Earlier this year, the Argentine brought up his 650th Barcelona goal with a sumptuous free-kick, his 49th for the club. In the past five seasons, Messi has scored at least ten more free-kicks than any player in Europe's top five leagues.
#10 Marcelinho Carioca - 59
Former Brazilian attacking midfielder Marcelinho Carioca is one of a handful of players to have scored over 50 free-kicks in his career.
He played over 300 career matches in five different countries, but was largely an unknown entity outside Brazil. Carioca also played a few games for the Selecao, but never appeared at a major tournament.
Due to his free-kick prowess, he was nicknamed Pe de Anjo (Angel Foot). He scored many fabulous free-kicks during his career, but none more memorable than the one that sealed Corinthians' state title in 1995.
The translation of the tweet reads:
"O #GolaçoDoDia is 25 years ago. On April 2, Marcelinho scored that great goal in the middle of the street against Palmeiras, in a game valid for the first phase of the @Paulistao. 1995, the year that Timão were champion! Who out there remembers this game?"
Marcelinho, who also netted a few goals directly from corners, scored free-kicks from all types of distances and angles. He later said about his free-kick technique:
“The key is getting it on target and letting the ‘keeper deal with it. Repetition leads to perfection.”
#9 Ronald Koeman - 60
Current Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman is one of the game's premier goalscoring defenders.
In fact, with over 250 career goals, he is the most prolific goalscoring defender in football history. That's a tally most attackers, leave alone defenders, would be quite proud of.
Koeman was also a dead-ball specialist, netting 60 free-kick goals for club and country during his illustrious career. The Dutchman was an integral player in Barcelona's Dream Team in the early 90s, striking up a key partnership with Pep Guardiola.
Ronald Koeman scored the lone goal from a free-kick in the 1992 Champions League final against Sampdoria. The dead-ball effort sealed Barcelona's first major continental title.
Koeman mixed guile with precision to score most of his free-kicks. He also scored a few key penalties during his career.
#8 Rogerio Ceni - 61
Rogerio Ceni, a free-kick specialist, is one of the game's premier goalscoring goalkeepers. In fact, his tally of 131 goals is almost double that of the next most prolific goalscoring goalkeeper - Jose Luis Chilavert (67). It's a tally many strikers and midfielders would be proud of.
The Brazilian scored most of his career goals through penalties and free-kicks, with only one goal coming from open play. Ceni hit his free-kicks with a mix of pace and swerve that flummoxed most goalkeepers.
In an interaction with Globoesporte in 2011, Ceni said about his free-kick hitting prowess:
"I trained a lot. I’d practice 2,500 to 3,000 free-kicks a month. I hit 15,000 free-kicks in training before I risked one in a game.”
Ceni played for more than two decades with Sau Paulo after debuting with Sinop in 1990. He also made a handful of appearances for Brazil, but didn't manage to find the back of the set for the Selecao.
#7 Zico - 62
Zico is one of the most skilful players to have graced the game. The Flamengo legend scored over 500 goals for club and country, a tally that included over 60 free-kicks.
Zico produced one of the all-time great years by any player when he netted 56 goals in 1979. That accounted for more than 50% of his team's goal tally. Suffice to say, he also scored a few free-kicks that year.
Zico mostly used finesse and precision to score off free-kicks, often hitting them with unerring accuracy, something that has been matched by very few players. He once scored a hat-trick of free-kicks for Udinese in a Serie A game.
#6 Diego Maradona - 62
Diego Maradona, a free-kick specialist, is widely regarded as one of the best players to have graced the game.
The late Argentine was a magician with the ball at his feet, scoring one of the goals of the tournament in the Albiceleste's victorious 1986 FIFA World Cup campaign. The Napoli legend also scored a plethora of memorable free-kicks during his career.
Maradona mostly used technique and precision for his free-kicks. He is also credited with having helped his compatriot Lionel Messi perfect the art of scoring from free-kicks.
#5 David Beckham - 65
David Beckham was one of the few Englishmen who perfected the technique of scoring from free-kicks.
Beckham's free-kick ability more than made up for his lack of pace on the field. He has scored many memorable free-kicks during his illustrious career. The former Manchester United and England legend wasn't a prolific scorer, but he was a dead-ball specialist.
The 46-year-old had pace, curl and accuracy in his free-kicks. At the point of contact, Beckham's foot was almost at a right angle to the trajectory of the ball. That lent the 'dead ball' enough fizz and spin to curl over the wall and dip back into the net.
#4 Ronaldinho - 66
Ronaldinho is another South American free-kick specialist who finds a mention on this list.
His brilliance and trickery with the ball was unmatched, leaving many a world-class defender looking foolish and trailing in his wake. The 2002 FIFA World Cup winner and Barcelona legend scored many memorable free-kicks during his relatively short but eventful career.
Ronaldinho's free-kicks had them all - power, fizz, curl, technique. The Brazilian once scored a memorable pile-driver of a free-kick past a transfixed David Seaman in a World Cup game. Spotting Seaman off his line, Ronaldinho ignored an expectant wall, catching the English keeper napping.
Ronaldinho used a lot of trickery and technique in his free-kicks to keep the opposition guessing. Be it curling the ball over the wall or drilling underneath the swarm of jumping players, the magician could do it all.
#3 Victor Legrotaglie - 66
Victor Legrotaglie is one of the top free-kick takers in the game, despite being one of the least-known players on this list. But he has scored more free-kicks than some of more illustrious compatriots, like Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.
The former Argentina international spent his entire playing career in his native country. He stayed put despite receiving offers from the likes of Juventus, Inter Milan and Real Madrid.
The 84-year-old had an eventful two-decade long career, most of which was spent at Gymnastics and Fencing.
#2 Pele - 70
Pele is widely regarded as the best player to have graced the beautiful game. The Brazilian legend is credited with scoring nearly 1300 goals in his illustrious career for club and country, friendlies included.
Despite his diminutive stature, Pele put many a stronger and taller defender to shame. It goes without saying that the three-time FIFA World Cup winner scored a lot of goals from free-kicks.
Pele mostly used a mix of impeccable technique and pace in his free-kick deliveries, employing little to no swerve. That often left goalkeepers wondering which way the ball would go.
#1 Juninho Pernambucano - 77
While there have been many fine free-kick takers over the years, there's arguably none better than Juninho Pernambucano.
Thanks to the usage of lighter and rounder balls, Juninho employed a wide array of techniques to hit the dead-ball. The Brazilian 'invented' the 'knuckleball' technique of hitting free-kicks, especially for ones from distance. That made the ball swerve in the air unpredictably, leaving goalkeepers often guessing the wrong way.
Analyzing his free-kick technique, the versatile dead-ball specialist has said that it depended on the distance and angle from goal. The free-kicks closer to the box involved less pace and more swerve compared to the ones from further out.
Juninho enhanced his stature as a world-class free-kick specialist during his prolific stint with Olympique Lyon in the 2000s. He scored 44 of his career free-kicks for the Ligue 1 team.
