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Scoring free-kicks requires flawless technique and a great amount of composure.
A goal from a direct free-kick can be one of the most satisfying things to witness on a football pitch. Free-kicks can be taken from anywhere but there are only a few areas from which a direct free-kick can be scored. But that is not an exhaustive list. We've seen outrageous free-kick goals being scored from various parts of a football pitch.
Whether it be putting enough curve on the ball that it swings away from the goalkeeper into the net or adding enough swerve and drip that it deceives the keeper in the air, executing a perfect free-kick is an art. We have seen a number of footballers who have mastered the this difficult craft.
Without further ado, let's take a look at five active players with the most free-kick goals.
#5 Aleksander Kolarov (Inter Milan) - 22 free-kick goals
Aleksander Kolarov's left-foot packs plenty of power and precision. The left-back who has had an illustrious career, is one of the best attacking full-backs of the modern era and has often drawn comparisons with Roberto Carlos for his mastery over set-pieces.
The Serb has won the Serie A title this term with Inter Milan and has previously had a hugely successful stint at Manchester City. Throughout his career, Kolarov has been renowned for his set-piece expertise, scoring goals from unlikely areas on the pitch by virtue of his impeccable technique.
He has scored 22 free-kick goals in his career and even at 35, Kolarov lining up a free-kick is an exciting sight for any football fan.
#4 Miralem Pjanic (Barcelona) - 26 free-kick goals
Miralem Pjanic is one of the most technically gifted midfielders of his generation. It is then a pity to watch him become a non-entity at Barcelona over the course of this season. Pjanic was one of Juventus' most important players during his stint in Turin and had grown in reputation as one of the best holding midfielders in the world.
Perhaps there is no better example of his technical proficiency than his free-kicks. Pjanic enjoyed a great conversion rate from free-kicks but he eventually had to share free-kick responsibilities with Dybala and Cristiano Ronaldo at Juventus. At Barcelona, he hardly ever plays and as such, it's a non-issue.
But we are all aware of what Pjanic is capable of with the dead ball. He has scored 26 free-kick goals for both club and country in his career.
#3 Hakan Calhanoglu (AC Milan) - 27 goals
Hakan Calhanoglu is one of the best free-kick takers in the game right now and he possesses the technique to find the back of the net from a variety of positions. The Turkish international has been incredibly prolific from set-pieces and has a wide range of strikes in his armor.
Calhanoglu was so good at free-kicks that during his time in Germany, where he played for second-tier club Karlsruher FC, Hamburger SV and Bayer Leverkusen, 38% of his goals came from direct free-kicks.
No one can forget the absolute peach of a free-kick he scored from near the halfway line for Bayer Leverkusen. Calhanoglu currently plies his trade for AC Milan and his overall game has improved greatly as well.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus) - 56 free-kick goals
Cristiano Ronaldo's brilliance from direct free-kicks is something we're starting to see less of. There was a time when Ronaldo lining up to take a free-kick, no matter how unfavourable the angle and distance, meant that the ball was likely going to end up in the back of the net.
That's exactly why he ranks so high up this list of elite footballers. Famous for popularizing the knuckle-ball, Ronaldo hardly ever tries to sidefoot the ball from dead-ball positions. Instead, he connects with his knuckles and this puts a lot of swerve and dip on the ball and when it comes off, it looks majestic.
Ronaldo has scored some absolute belters for Manchester United, Real Madrid and the Portuguese national side from free-kicks. But his last goal from a direct free-kick came in the 2019-20 season against Torino.
#1 Lionel Messi (Barcelona) - 56 free-kick goals
There has arguably been no footballer who has had a better relationship with the ball than Lionel Messi. Messi knows exactly how to execute stunning finishes and it's a treat to just watch him at it.
Messi equalled Cristiano Ronaldo's free-kick tally on May 2nd, 2021 and he is at the top of this list for having accomplished it from fewer matches.
Lionel Messi wasn't always a free-kick taker. It's a skill he added to his arsenal over the course of the years but once he got good at it, like most things he's great at, there was hardly anyone around who could give him competition.
Some of Messi's best free-kicks have come from 30 odd yards out, like the one against Liverpool where he almost curled the ball around the wall and away from the goalkeeper. The latest addition to his collection came yesterday against Valencia.
