The best free-kick takers in the world - ranked

The world can feel like a divisive place, now more than ever, but there is one thing that binds all together in these testing times. For at heart, we are all free-kick fanatics.

Out of all the set pieces we possess, the free kick is by far the most coveted, the most cherished, and by proxy, the most arduous. It takes thousands and thousands and thousands of hours to perfect this mesmeric craft. And, even then, probably thousands hours more to maintain it. 

And, as with most other art forms - and this is an art form - there are many different ways to execute a free kick, and thus many proponents worthy of celebration.

You can thwack it with untethered power, caress it accurately into the top corner or even attempt the thinking man's free kick by rolling the ball unassumingly under the wall. Take your pick.

Here the 25 best free-kick takers currently bamboozling goalkeepers and walls alike - ranked.

25. Lucas Zelarayan

The Argentine-born Armenia international Lucas Zelarayan is known for being a sweet striker of the ball and has been a regular scorer of exceptional free kicks across his career. He's scored directly from dead balls over ten times as he travelled the Americas, now providing the Saudi Pro League with his unique skill set.

Two in one match against New York City FC in Major League Soccer is the highlight of his free-kick résumé, one of which came as a 95th-minute winner for previous employers Columbus Crew.

24. Marcos Alonso

Marcos Alonso has never been the most glamorous full-back but the Spaniard has always boasted the ability to trigger small earthquakes with one swing of his left boot. That comes in handy standing over set pieces.

However, he generally took a more methodical approach when it came to free kicks, seldom failing to pick out the postage stamp from the edge of the area during his Chelsea days.

The defender's best was a slightly different effort though, bending the ball low around the outside of the Southampton wall from 30 yards, much to the confusion of Saints goalkeeper Fraser Forster.

23. Philippe Coutinho

Philippe Coutinho is a YouTube compilation creator's dream given his incredible knack for scoring absolute worldies. It's hard to remember a single one of the Brazilian's goals that hasn't been a whipped rocket from range, with free-kick taking firmly within his wheelhouse.

Liverpool fans will testify to his brilliance from dead-ball situations and he bagged an impressive six free kicks across his Anfield career. The pick of the bunch undoubtedly came at Upton Park where the diminutive midfielder slotted the ball underneath the jumping West Ham wall ever so nonchalantly.

22. Christian Eriksen

It's easy to forget just how sensational Christian Eriksen was stood over a free kick. The goals have dried up during the twilight of his career but they were incredibly forthcoming at the peak of his powers.

Able to manipulate a ball with incredible accuracy, the midfielder bagged a remarkable 11 direct free kicks during his Tottenham days. Favouring placement over power, he would often leave opposition goalkeepers rooted to the spot as the ball drifted into the top corner.

21. Enis Bardhi

Enis Bardhi is undoubtedly North Macedonia's greatest ever free-kick taker. Okay, that may not be saying too much, but he is darn good from dead balls.

The feisty midfielder was most prolific at Levante with his thunderous free kicks but they have generally followed him closely wherever he's ended up. Do yourself a favour and find a highlight reel of his best. You won't be disappointed.

20. Ager Aketxe

Having bounced around his home country, many Spanish football fans have been fortunate enough to witness Ager Aketxe's gift. A fairly unassuming player, the midfielder comes alive on set pieces.

The journeyman has been a reliable provider of free kick goals across his career and there's always something extra special about a left-footed dead-ball specialist. He's netted free kicks for four different clubs in Spain.

19. Robert Skov

During his days in Copenhagen, Robert Skov scored a staggering seven free kicks in a single season. In fact, almost a quarter of his goals with the Danish club came from free kicks.

Power, pace and accuracy combined in a flick of the ankle, few in world football can match Skov's reliability from set pieces. He has only lost one match in which he has scored a free kick, making him a handy signing for superstitious suitors.

18. Ruslan Malinovskyi

Belgian outfit Genk must have been stunned when Ruslan Malinovskyi first rocked up in training. The Ukrainian midfielder is not just an adept free-kick taker, he strikes the ball with incredible venom and precision.

In three seasons in Belgium, Malinovskyi bagged a remarkable 12 direct free kicks - almost half the goals he scored for Genk. The skills he honed in Limburg were transferred seamlessly to Italian football.

17. Cristiano Ronaldo

There is significant debate over whether Cristiano Ronaldo is actually a good free-kick taker. The Portuguese icon trademarked the 'Ronaldo' stance when readying himself to strike a dead ball - legs spread wide and a big puff of the chest before lasering a free kick goalward.

While he has scored plenty of free kicks during an illustrious career - that effort against Portsmouth during his first stint at Manchester United was different gravy - his powers have certainly waned in recent years, with the ball often powerfully planting itself into the defending wall as opposed to the top corner.

Still, for his longevity and past free-kick heroics, he deserves a place in this list.

16. David Alaba

For the past decade, David Alaba has been one of football's most consistent footballers. That certainly applies to free kicks, too.

The Austrian's delicate yet rocket-fuelled left foot has the capacity to pick out the top corner with striking regularity, making him lethal within 30 yards of the opposition goal.

"I often stay out on the pitch during the week, practising free-kicks. Twenty minutes at least – sometimes half-an-hour," Alaba admitted.

Practice makes perfect.

15. Hulk

We know what you're thinking. Yes, Hulk is still playing professional football.

Therefore, the chiselled Brazilian remains among the world's best free-kick takers. He has burst many a net and goalkeeper's spirit with his piercing set pieces, with no distance - and we mean no distance - too far away from goal for the veteran.

Hulk's ability to get incredible power and swerve on his strikes makes them borderline unstoppable when on target.

14. Kieran Trippier

While he may not boast the attacking ingenuity required of elite modern right-backs, Kieran Trippier certainly has the ability to chip in with a fair few goals and assists.

Since his move to Newcastle United he has already wowed the Geordie crowd with some pinpoint free kicks, providing tremendous accuracy and curve when he strikes a set piece.

13. Bruno Fernandes

Free kick goals have proved surprisingly tough to come by for Bruno Fernandes at Old Trafford, made all the more bizarre by his excellent record during his Sporting CP days.

It's clear for all to see just how beautifully the Portuguese strikes a football and that has extended itself to set pieces. He bagged seven free kicks in Lisbon and will be desperate to add to his tally in the coming years.

12. Robert Lewandowski

You associate Robert Lewandowski with many things. Brilliant finishing, exceptional hold-up play, wonderful intelligence and cringey TikTok videos, but perhaps not free kicks.

However, that would be an oversight given the Polish striker's record from such scenarios. Despite fighting for free-kick responsibilities during his time at Bayern Munich, the ruthless centre-forward bagged five free kicks with Die Roten, and has the accuracy required to be an impressive sharpshooter from dead balls.

11. Angel Di Maria

Somewhat surprisingly, Angel Di Maria didn't net his first senior free kick at club level until he arrived for his unhappy spell at Manchester United. Striking during a 4-0 win over Queens Park Rangers in 2014, it was a sign of things to come.

Di Maria became a relentless free-kick goalscorer following his move to Paris Saint-Germain, netting nine for the French giants. He may have had more had he not been displaced by Neymar and Lionel Messi in the capital.

10. Vincenzo Grifo

Set-piece specialists don't come much more prolific than Vincenzo Grifo. The Freiburg stalwart has often been overlooked out of the spotlight of Europe's elite clubs, but few can strike a free kick as cleanly or accurately as the Italian.

During his first season in Freiburg, Grifo established himself as the king of dead balls. He leathered home six for the German side and hasn't slowed down his tremendous output in and around the opposition penalty box.

9. Paulo Dybala

During his first three seasons with Juventus, Paulo Dybala made sure there could be no doubting the Old Lady's best free-kick taker. He scored nine of them and Udinese were unlucky to be on the receiving end of a third of those.

Injuries have meant that those glorious left-footed strikes have been less frequent in recent seasons but he netted his first free kick in four years during the 2023/24 campaign with Roma.

A renaissance, perhaps?

8. James Maddison

Not only does James Maddison win his fair share of free kicks, he scores plenty as well. In fact, only several players in Premier League history have scored more than him in the competition.

Ten of his career free kicks came with Leicester City where he established himself as one of England's most promising set-piece takers, with Tottenham now the beneficiaries of his brilliance from dead balls.

7. Kevin De Bruyne

Is there anything Kevin De Bruyne can't do with a football?

He can most certainly take a mean free kick, rather expectedly given his capacity for 30-yard belters, pinpoint curlers and venomous low drives. He can produce any type of finish.

The same applies to his free-kick technique which is as varied as it is special. He has now firmly solidified his spot as Manchester City's free-kick king.

6. Trent Alexander-Arnold

Having revolutionised the right-back position for Liverpool, Trent Alexander-Arnold has also taken Steven Gerrard's free-kick crown. With plenty more fabulous set-piece strikes to come for the Reds, he actually bagged his first ever goal for the club from a free kick during a Champions League clash with Hoffenheim.

Alexander-Arnold has only developed his shooting skills further from there and the Liverpool lad often picks out the top corner.

5. Dani Parejo

Before his move to Villarreal, Dani Parejo was a reliable free-kick master. Between his arrival at Valencia and his departure, there was only one season in which he failed to score one.

If you search up Parejo's Valencia goals, you will swiftly notice how varied he was in his approach, mixing the standard up and over the wall technique with some powerful drives towards the goalkeeper's side.

A magician over set pieces.

4. Neymar

Neymar's ability to do weird and wonderful things with a ball at his feet doesn't stop at free kicks, from which he has racked up quite the goal tally over the years.

He bagged five for Barcelona when he could wrestle the ball from Messi's grasp and a further seven for PSG following his move to France. Absolutely deadly.

Given he has had to share free-kick duties with his dazzling teammates, there is a strong possibility that he would have slotted home even more had he been the designated taker at all his clubs.

3. Hakan Calhanoglu

In our humble opinion, Hakan Calhanoglu is the scorer of one of football's greatest free kicks. Back when he donned a Hamburg jersey, his driving effort from a whopping 45 yards out that danced in the air as it flew towards the Borussia Dortmund goal remains tough to beat.

He may not have bagged a free kick since 2020/21 but he has still scored a truly astounding 25 of them to date - 20 of which came during the days he spent in Germany.

2. Lionel Messi

In the longstanding GOAT debate between Lionel Messi and Ronaldo, it's certainly the diminutive Argentine who comes out on top in terms of free kicks - even if Ronaldo boasts a superior penalty record.

Of Messi's gazillion goals over the past few decades, a large amount have come directly from free kicks. With Barcelona, that proved to be a staggering half-century of strikes.

Arguably one of the greatest free-kick takers of all time - alongside the likes of Juninho and Zico - Messi is the perfect set-piece expert.

1. James Ward-Prowse

It may be cliché but free kicks really are as good as penalties when you have James Ward-Prowse standing over them. No player in the competition's history is even close to the 17 Premier League free kicks that the West Ham midfielder has buried over the years.

With an exceptional blend of pace, precision and ingenuity, there is no free-kick taker in world football better than Ward-Prowse right now, and lord only knows how many he will rack up before hanging up his boots.

READ MORE ON THE BEST 25 PLAYERS FOR EVERY POSITION IN WORLD FOOTBALL