Andrea Pirlo (foto: Getty Images)
The Italian midfield maestro, renowned for his precision from dead-ball situations, named Juninho Pernambucano as the best free-kick specialist in history.
Andrea Pirlo, widely regarded as one of football’s finest set-piece takers, has revealed who he believes is the greatest free-kick taker of all time—and it's not Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.
Despite Messi (66) and Ronaldo (64) free-kick goals, Pirlo instead chose Juninho Pernambucano, the former Lyon and Vasco da Gama icon, who scored 77 career free-kicks.
"I studied Juninho, his technique, I collected DVDs of his matches, even old photographs of games he played," Pirlo wrote in his autobiography "I Think, Therefore I Play."
"During his time at Lyon, he made the ball do extraordinary things. It was as if a conductor had a baton in his foot instead of his hands."
Pirlo admired Juninho so much that he even tried to replicate his technique. "I’m Italian, but there’s also a part of me that is Brazilian—Pirlinho," he joked. "When I take free-kicks, I think in Portuguese, and most of the time, I celebrate in my native language."
Juninho saw Pjanić as his heir
Following his retirement in 2015, Juninho named Miralem Pjanić as his successor in the art of free-kick taking.
"Pjanić has incredible quality. He’s possibly the best free-kick taker in the world today. No, I’m sure—he is," Juninho told L’Equipe.
Having played together at Lyon during the 2008/09 season, Juninho praised Pjanić’s variety of techniques and consistency, stating that mastering set pieces requires relentless repetition.
"Before I left, I told him the key to becoming a great free-kick taker: repetition. It’s exhausting, but it’s the most important thing," Juninho revealed.