Juninho’s unreal free-kick for Lyon vs Barcelona in 2009 remembered

Highlights

• Juninho is regarded as the greatest free-kick taker ever, having scored a record 77 free-kicks during his football career.
• His free-kick goal for Lyon against Barcelona was unreal and may well be the best he scored during his time as a professional footballer.
• Many huge names in football have praised Juninho’s set-piece ability, including Andrea Pirlo, who called him ‘extraordinary’.

Juninho Pernambucano is widely regarded as the greatest free-kick taker in football history. During his peak years at Lyon, the Brazilian seemed to ripple the back of the net from set-piece situations every other week. Overall, Juninho scored 77 free-kicks throughout the course of his career and some of them still leave us open-mouthed to this very day.

And perhaps the very best of the star’s illustrious collection came against arguably the finest club side ever assembled – Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona. In February of 2009, when the Blaugrana were on their way to securing a treble, Juninho scored a free-kick so good that it almost looked as if it defied the laws of physics.

From a ridiculously tight angle, the sharpshooter took aim and produced a stunning effort that somehow dipped below Victor Valdes’ crossbar and into the back of the net. There’s no goalkeeper in the world who would have stood a chance of keeping the strike out, and it has to be seen to be believed, so let’s take a look.

Juninho’s superhuman free-kick vs Barcelona

The technique is out of this world

Okay, someone needs to do a case study on Juninho’s masterpiece against prime Barcelona, because a human being shouldn’t be able to perform magic like that. The set-piece specialist’s goal put Lyon 1-0 up in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League last-16 tie, but the French outfit were unable to hold onto the lead.

Thierry Henry levelled the scores at 1-1 and then Barcelona recorded a hugely impressive 5-2 victory on home soil, a match in which Juninho picked up a late red card. But let’s not focus on that minor negative and instead re-focus on the Brazilian icon’s insane free-kick taking ability. In an interview with FourFourTwo, Juninho explained how he became a master of the craft at Lyon.

“I was always great at shooting, but as a child, I didn’t have enough power to score free-kicks. I played futsal until I was 13 and didn’t really score much, but it was around then that I started to take some free-kicks.

“The wall was too close, though, so it was rare that I’d hit the goal. It wasn’t until I got to France that I mastered my technique.”

Juninho also touched on his use of the knuckleball technique, something Cristiano Ronaldo has used to great effect throughout his career.

“I started by copying free-kicks taken by Marcelinho, who played for Corinthians. He was one of my inspirations, and the first player I had ever seen hit the ball head-on and make it dance in the air. That tells you that the technique isn’t mine, either!

“Didi, who won the World Cup with Brazil in 1958 and 1962, was doing it back then, too. Everyone since has just been tweaking the formula.”

The Brazilian’s insane ability from the set piece has earned admiration from figures all over the world. Numerous footballers have sung his praises in the past, but perhaps the most significant star to ever speak out about his skills was Andre Pirlo.

Andrea Pirlo was a big fan of Juninho’s free-kicks

Receiving praise from any fellow professional footballer has to be nice for Juninho, but getting some from one of the greatest midfielders of all time has to be extra special. That’s what happened, though, when Pirlo spoke out about the former Lyon star’s knack for scoring free-kicks. The Italian was mightily impressed with Juninho’s skill and shared that in his book, ‘I think therefore I play’.

“That man made the ball do some quite extraordinary things. He’d lay it on the ground, twist his body into a few strange shapes, take his run-up and score. He never got it wrong. Never.

“I checked out his stats and realised it couldn’t just be chance. He was like an orchestra conductor who’d been assembled upside down, with the baton held by his feet instead of his hands. He’d give you the thumbs up by raising his big toe – somebody at Ikea was having a good laugh the day they put him together.”

Talk about high praise from one of the greatest to ever do it.