Top five active players with most free-kick goals in history

Free Kick Specialists with deadly accuracy in Football

In the electrifying world of football, where glory hangs in the balance of every heartbeat, unparalleled talents have emerged as true magicians on the pitch. With a swish of their boots, they conjure spells that bend the very laws of physics, shaping the trajectory of the ball with an elegance that seems almost supernatural.

From jaw-dropping knuckleballs to wickedly spinning rockets and the curved balls, they leave goalkeepers rooted in awe and fans bewitched by their mesmerizing brilliance.

Step into their world of breathtaking precision and unparalleled finesse as we celebrate the top five active players with most free-kick goals in history:

5. Neymar Jr- 19 goals

Neymar Jr. as we all know is one of the most technically gifted players in the history of the beautiful game. He has an exquisite technique and unreal vision when it comes to on the field, it is a joy to watch him go be himself everytime he steps on the field.

He is one of the best penalty takers in the world and is almost a sure shot from 12 yards, he's the reason why penalty rules were changed because of how clever he was while taking the penalties. He has scored 19 goals through freekicks and usually sidefoots his free-kicks but manages to infuse plenty of power into his shots.

Also Read: Top 10 footballers with most freekick goals in history

4. Miralem Pjanic- 26 goals

The Bosnia and Herzegovina international is a very technically sound player and possesses a great understanding of the game. During his playing time at Juventus, he was widely regarded as one of the best deep-lying playmakers of his generation.

Juninho, widely regarded as the greatest free-kick taker of all time, hailed Pjanic as the world's best free-kick taker in 2017. In Europe, he was known for his pin-point ball deliveries, crosses and on top of it his ability to score from free-kicks.

3. Hakan Calhanoglu- 28 goals

Hakan Calhanoglu was one of the heroes for Inter Milan against AC Milan in the Champions League when he scored an outside-of-the-box goal in the semi-final of the competition. It shows that he has an incredible shooting range.

He has not been very effective in recent times from set-pieces but the Turkey international was extremely prolific a few years ago during his stay in Germany with clubs like Hamburger SV and Bayer Leverkusen, Calhanoglu first came into the limelight courtesy of his set-piece ability. During that period, he scored 38% of his goals from direct free-kick.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo- 60 goals

There was a time when Cristiano Ronaldo was widely regarded as the best free-kick taker in the business. He popularized the knuckleball technique which includes a great deal of swerve and dip on the ball by kicking it with his knuckles. Players across the globe have tried to copy his technique for years now.

Ronaldo has scored a free-kick every 19.5 games during his career, he used to be incredibly accurate but his free-kick powers have certainly waned in recent times. Out of two of the greatest active free-kick takers he is one of them. Ronaldo, now 38, could move into the top five of the players with the most free-kick goals before he hangs up his boots.

1. Lionel Messi- 63 goals

Lionel Messi surpassed the late Diego Maradona who had 62 free-kick goals when he scored the free-kick in his debut for Inter Miami. It was a perfect setup for him, with the last minute of added time it just had to be him and as David Beckham said "it was the best arrival announcement he could've wished", he literally had tears in his eyes after Messi.

This was just the replica of what he scored against Liverpool in the Champions League when he was playing for Barcelona. He is just 2 goals behind David Beckham in the all-time list of the best free-kick goalscorers, Messi broke Inter Miami's 11 game losing streak. He's only a couple of free-kick goals away from breaking into the top three of the all time list.