Can you believe that one of Christiano Ronaldo's Manchester United team-mates wanted to take that free-kick at Sunderland? It was a short debate. "No, leave it to me. Watch this . . . top corner," he replied. And that's where it ended up.It is pure theatre watching Ronaldo. He is on top of his game, oozing confidence and when he prepares to take a free-kick, there is a buzz of expectation around the stadium — you can just see the fear in the opposition defenders and goalkeeper. They know what's coming, what they don't know is how to stop it.
When Ronaldo prepares to strike for goal, he stands back — a bit like Jonny Wilkinson preparing to take aim from a rugby penalty. He opens his legs, rocks from side to side as he shifts his weight and focuses on the target. Then he clumps the ball, whacks the plastic off it, punts it, stuns it with force and power and control and aim. The end result, more often than not, is another spectacular goal.
How does he do it? When he strikes the ball, he runs straight and also connects with the front of his foot, uses his laces and gets the ball to dip and whip. And he's mastered the art, too.
Try it yourself and you'll see how difficult it is. I heard that he used to strike the valve, which compresses the ball and makes it move and swerve as it changes shape in the air. I'm not sure if he has the same technique now, we'll have to watch and see. I hear that he might just have modified his method to better the end result.Craig Gordon couldn't tell you how it happens. The Sunderland goalkeeper barely saw the ball, such was the speed and the movement as the shot flashed past him on the way to Manchester United's 4-0 win and a place back at the top of the Barclays Premier League.
Let's not forget the accuracy, too.
Ronaldo put the ball exactly where he meant to and, as someone who liked taking free-kicks, I can tell you that's not always so easy; I saw plenty sailing over the bar. Ronaldo will practise that skill every day after training, possibly for half an hour, hitting 30 or 40 shots. Like an outstanding golfer, repetition will be the key.
When I took a free-kick, I would try to hit the ball cleanly and put my foot through it. I couldn't take them like Ronaldo, but the ball has changed now. It's easier to deceive the goalkeeper. That's my excuse anyway. I remember scoring an important free-kick against Blackburn on the last day of the season for Liverpool at Anfield. We won the game, but they won the title.
David Beckham was the standard bearer, but his technique was different from the current Manchester United No 7's. Beckham would approach a ball from the side and then wrap his foot around to curl the ball with pace and bend. We all remember his last minute goal for England against Greece at Old Trafford. In club games when he was taking aim, you would always think: 'Oh no . . .'
Gianfranco Zola had a great talent for getting the ball up and over the defensive wall quickly and then back down as the ball spun and gathered pace on its way towards the goal. He didn't have the same power as Ronaldo, although he carried similar menace. Ruud Gullit was another former Chelsea player who would make you regret conceding the free-kick. He was a great technician with the ball, you would instantly dread the outcome and stand there expecting trouble.
Another favourite of mine, a brilliant free-kick taker, was my former Liverpool team-mate Gary McAllister, who could also take a fantastic corner. He would stroke the ball, hit it in a delicate way and float his shot away from the goalkeeper. Accuracy, more than power, was his weapon.
Rocket manHaving a dead-ball specialist carries such a threat in the modern game. The Manchester United versus Liverpool game and the Arsenal versus Chelsea game were both decided by goals from set plays.Every team needs one specialist and United have the best. Didier Drogba smashes the ball for Chelsea and Liverpool's Steven Gerrard can also finish from long range and has scored some spectacular goals himself. He, too, is different from Ronaldo and likes the ball slipped to the side to give him the angle as he runs on to a moving ball.
Ronaldo had a slow start to this season. He was sent off at Portsmouth, it took him until the end of September before he scored his first League goal and he didn't come flying out of the blocks. I had him in my Fantasy League team and after three or four games, I thought I'd made a mistake.
Now he is the top scorer in the top flight, he has scored 17 goals in all competitions and is on course to beat last season's haul of 25 goals. Looking at the records for last season, he is already five ahead. On current form, the Footballer of the Year is again the best player in the country. Don't simply take my word for it, look at the records. In his last 13 games he has scored 15 goals.
The next time they win a free-kick in the danger area, it might be wise for his United team-mates simply to let him have the ball.
wtf! i never knew this could make a difference