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Football has evolved to the point where teams would deploy any possible way to win games. There was a time when goals used to be predominantly scored from inside the box, however, the game has now reached a level where goals can be scored from anywhere on the pitch.
As a result, every manager would love to have a player with some special qualities. There is a popular saying that a team wins trophies, but special players win the points that accumulate to become those titles.
To this end, free-kick specialists have become increasingly invaluable to managers in this era – for it is they who are able to bail their teams out when there seems to be no way. Whether it is bending the ball from the right-side of the penalty box or sliding it just below the opposition’s four-man wall, free-kick goals are always a joy to watch.
Fortunately, the Premier League has never been short of good set-piece takers. The English top flight has indeed witnessed some great goals from free-kicks, and it is only fair that the men who scored them are given their rightful places.
So, let’s take a look at the top five greatest free-kick takers in the history of the Premier League.
#5 Frank Lampard/ Nolberto Solano/Jamie Redknapp (9 goals)
The Premier League has seen many great free-kick takers pass through, but there are some players whose names have been immortalised due to how well they could strike dead balls.
Chelsea legend Frank Lampard was one of those. The former England star is rated as the fifth greatest free-kick taker in the Premier League, together with former Newcastle United midfielder Nolberto Solano and Liverpool legend Jamie Redknapp.
These three players netted an impressive nine goals from set-pieces in the Premier League. Among the trio, Lampard may be the most popular to millennials, but the fact is that Solano and Redknapp were equally as special from free-kicks.
These were players who could strike the ball from anywhere on the pitch, provided they could get a clear sight at the goal. Their nine set-piece goals put them among the greatest with such ability ever to play in the English top flight.
#4 Ian Harte/ Morten Gamst Pedersen (10 goals)
Two players share the number four spot when it comes to the list of greatest free-kick takers to ever play in the Premier League. First is Blackburn Rovers legend Morten Gamst Pedersen, who made over 280 appearances for the club.
Pederson often played as a winger, but was deadly when it came to set-pieces. Before he departed Blackburn Rovers in 2013, the Norwegian had scored an astonishing ten goals from free-kicks alone. That was how good he was.
But he shares this record with former Leeds United and Sunderland defender, Ian Harte. Despite being a left-back, the Irishman was one of the best during his heydays when it came to free-kicks in the Premier League.
Both Harte and Pederson had the ability to curl the ball past any wall, irrespective of how tall and how well it was constructed, and that’s how come they scored ten goals apiece from free-kicks.
#3 Cristiano Ronaldo/ Sebastian Larsson/ Laurent Robert (11 goals)
For many football fans, Cristiano Ronaldo would probably be their first pick when it comes to greatest free-kick takers in the Premier League. The Portuguese was indeed a good set-piece taker, but his record of 11 free-kick goals in the English top flight was shared with other players.
Former Birmingham City and Sunderland midfielder Sebastian Larsson also scored the same number of goals from dead balls during his spell with the aforementioned clubs. The Swede is not one of most talked-about players but, technically, he was as good as any player you could think of.
The third player who sits on number three together with Ronaldo and Larsson is former Newcastle United and Portsmouth winger Laurent Robert, who also managed 11 goals from set-pieces.
Perhaps, Ronaldo may have had more exposure – and more spectacular goals – than the other two players, but all three are very special in their own rights when it comes to free-kicks.
#2 Thierry Henry/ Gianfranco Zola (12 goals)
In number two are two of the Premier League’s greatest players. Arsenal legend Thierry Henry and Chelsea counterpart Gianfranco Zola were not only brilliant when it came dribbling and taking on defenders, they are equally deft from set-pieces.
Henry managed 12 goals from free-kicks during his time at Arsenal. The Frenchman, who was converted from a winger into a striker by Arsene Wenger, bailed the Gunners out on so many occasions due to his special set-piece abilities.
The story is no different for Zola, who won the hearts of millions if Chelsea fans with his spectacular free-kick goals. The Italian was simply breath-taking to watch when it came to dead balls and he often did not disappoint.
Both Henry and Zola may have retired now, and have even gone into management, but their legacies in the Premier League continue to be remembered. Especially those 12 free-kick goals.
#1 David Beckham (18 goals)
In the number one spot and undoubtedly the greatest free-kick taker in the history of the Premier League is David Beckham. The winger was simply a set-piece master, with his trademark curlers still very much etched in the minds of many football fans.
For over a decade Beckham trilled Manchester United fans and won the club games in the dying minutes with his flawless free-kicks. In the 2000s there was a popular slogan among English fans which went like: “bend it like Beckham”.
The former England captain was that good, and it is evidenced by his 18 Premier League goals scored from direct free-kicks. It is a number that puts him six goals clear of his nearest competitors when it comes to set-piece goals.
Maybe longevity helped him, but Beckham was just marvellous from dead balls and it will take some time before the Premier League sees another as clinical as he was from free-kicks.
