Premier League's Top 5 free-kick takers in recent years
Nothing elicits more anticipation than a player standing over a free-kick with his eye firmly set on beating the goalkeeper with a direct shot on goal. While many players look to float the ball into the box for teammates to head home, there are a select few who have the confidence to beat the goalkeeper from any angle and find the back of the net.
It’s arguably the toughest way to score a goal; manoeuvering the ball around, over, or even under the wall before outfoxing the goalkeeper with the ball’s trajectory. Almost every member of the team can score a goal but only one or two can actually consistently score from a free-kick.
So who were the Premier League’s best free-kick takers in the past few seasons? We look at the top five ranked by goals scored and their conversion rate from set-pieces since the 2011/12 season.
Honourable Mentions
There were a few players who just missed out on the top five (some by virtue of not playing as many seasons as those in the top five). Former Liverpool striker Luis Suarez scored five goals from free-kicks with a conversion rate of 17.2% while Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez has also scored five goals with a conversion rate of 16.7%.
Sebastian Larsson, who has been in the English top flight for longer, has also scored five goals from free-kicks but his conversion rate is just 12.5%.
5) Christian Eriksen (Tottenham Hotspur)
Christian Eriksen has been at Tottenham since the 2013/14 season when he was signed from Ajax for just £11m. Arriving in England as a young 21-year-old, he was already heralded as the heir to Michael Laudrup in the Danish football setup by none other than Johan Cruyff.
“Only time will tell if Eriksen can reach the same level as them,” he had said back in 2011. Eriksen has since established himself as one of the key members of the Tottenham squad that has been the best side over the past couple of seasons even though they are yet to go all the way and win the league title.
In dead ball situations, he is one player many goalkeepers have tried to study and failed to keep out. Swansea’s Lukasz Fabianski once said: “Is he the best? I don't know. I will just say he is the first player to score two free kicks against me! He not only gets the ball over the wall, puts a load of pressure into the shot as well.”
So how does Eriksen do it? Well, he learned from watching the master himself – Andrea Pirlo. “I’ve watched Pirlo a few times, just because he makes it look so easy. When he’s over the ball, you know there’s a good chance of a goal.
“I’ve practised free-kicks since I was very young. I’ve always known I had a good shot, and I know what feeling I need to have to get the ball on goal.”