The Top FIVE Players With The Most Free Kick Goals Of All Time

David Tully

1 year ago

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For today’s post, we have decided to look back at the best free kick specialists of all time.

Scoring from a dead ball outside of the box really isn’t easy. Anyone who has tried it at a local park will know how difficult it is to produce the pace and accuracy necessary to score from so far out.

Some of the players on our list today weren’t known just for scoring from set pieces. In fact, two of them are arguably among the best footballers to have ever played the sport.

Press the next page as we go through the five players who have scored the most free kicks in football history.

5) David Beckham – 65

The England star’s ability to whip the ball with his right foot was unparalleled. It even led to a film titled “Bend It Like Beckham” as a tribute to his outstanding skill.

Beckham was an expert crosser due to his technique but it also lent itself to free-kicks. The most memorable one came against Greece whilst playing for England, helping his country to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.

=3) Ronaldinho – 66

The Brazilian forward pretty much had everything in his locker. His dribbling ability was legendary, and he was even given a round of applause by Real Madrid fans for one of his goals when he scored against them for Barcelona.

Ronaldinho could also bag a goal from a free kick, although his most famous one was probably his misplaced cross which ended up in the back of England’s net at the 2002 World Cup.

=3) Victor Legrottaglie – 66

Not many people outside of Argentina will know much about the midfielder but he spent most of his career playing for Gimnasia y Esgrima de Mendoza where he is held in the highest esteem to this day.

Legrottagalie was linked with moves to Real Madrid and Inter Milan but he never left his home. He sits above the likes of fellow countrymen Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona in terms of his ability to take free kicks.

2) Pele – 77

Even taking into account Lionel Messi’s remarkable exploits, many still believe that the Brazilian legend is still the greatest player of all time.

Pele’s goal record from free-kicks means he wasn’t satisfied simply with being a poacher. His excellent ball striking meant he was also a major threat from set-pieces.

1) Juninho Pernambucano – 77

The Brazilian pioneered the use of the “knuckleball” when executing his free kicks, which means he was able to kick right through the ball with a minimal amount of spin. That allowed the Brazilian to score long-range set-piece goals with precision.

Considering Juninho scored 198 in his professional career, it means an incredible 39% of his goals came from free kicks alone.