Hey, it’s Raj from 3CB Performance.
Current Juventus superstar & footballing legend Cristiano Ronaldo was once a feared free kick-taker
- netting 44 goals over his first 12 seasons.
I detailed his techniques in my last football video.
However, his success on free-kicks has taken a severe hit in recent years, having scored
no free kick goals for Juventus in non-exhibition games - he had a very fortunate ricochet goal
in the 2019 ICC vs Inter - and overall only nine free kick goals on 174 attempts since 2014.
A paltry 5% success rate, the worst of any player to have scored five free-kicks during
that time period.
In this video, I’ll analyze potential reasons for his recent struggles and possible solutions.
Cristiano’s knuckleball technique is a delicate balance of power, lift, and striking the ball
without creating spin.
When looking over his free kick misses since 2014, the power is still there but he’s
struggling to get lift on the ball
or generate the unpredictable movement that characterizes a well hit knuckleball.
That begs the question - what has changed?
We’ll likely never know the true root causes for Cristiano’s free kick woes but we can
take some educated guesses based on knownvariables.
Comparing Cristiano’s free kick technique pre-2014 to 2014 and beyond, there’s no
discernible differences on tape.
It’s the same distinctive routine with the step back, V leg position, deep breaths and
pulling up on the shorts, run-up with a vault step and left leg planted closely to the ball,
and in-step strike.
For much more detail on the technique, I encourage you to watch the video I made specifically
on his technique.
The major caveat here is that there very well could be indiscernible differences that aren’t
apparent on film study, for example the velocity of his swing leg, trunk angle, specific contact
point, ball spin rate, etc.
Even if these differences are only very minor, they can cascade - especially if early on
in the movement - and affect the very sensitive free kick movement sequence.
It’s like doing a multi-step math problem where the earlier you round an answer, the
more error you have at the end.
I’ve heard and read many people partly attribute Cristiano’s struggles to changes in the
ball itself but that argument doesn’t add up when looked into.
Although the research certainly indicates different ball characteristics can influence
ball movement in the air - for example, the 2010 World Cup ball Jabulani created all sorts
of zigzag movement - Cristiano played with multiple different ball iterations prior to
2014 - Nike iterations in the Premier League and La Liga and Adidas iterations in the Champions
League - yet seemingly had no issue.
He’s continued to play with Nike and Adidas iterations since 2014,
including during his time at Juventus.
The ball change argument implies there was some fundamental change made to both the Nike
and Adidas balls in 2014 and these changes were carried over to every iteration thereafter.
Not only does this sound like an extremely unlikely coincidence more importantly, there’s
no evidence to support that assertion.
When reviewing Cristiano’s injury history, there’s an uptick in lower body muscular
injuries that aligns with his free kick decline in the 2013/14 season and onwards, following
two years of excellent health in the 2 seasons prior.
However, typically when injuries interact with performance, you see a player decline
in multiple areas which hasn’t been the case for Cristiano.
Taking both sides into consideration, I believe it’s reasonable to think injuries may have
played a role in the decline - especially early on - and then with subsequent misses,
snowballed to affect Cristiano’s confidence.
Confidence and rhythm are critical aspects for free kicks in which success or failure
depends on very thin margins, with the knuckleball technique having even thinner margins.
Movement research clearly indicates that rhythm and confidence optimize movement patterns
- termed “neuromuscular priming” - and its why free kick routines are so important.
When confidence decreases and rhythm is disrupted, players tend to start overthinking their movements
and have increased feelings of pressure and anxiety.
These are termed “internal distractions”.
Considering Cristiano’s free kick record over the past six years, it’s quite plausible
he falls into this category and his frustration after failed attempts has become increasingly evident.
The research further tells us these internal distractions would significantly impact a
player like Cristiano who is considered to be in the expert, “automatic” phase of
the free kick movement and had considerable success in the past.
A pre-strike routine can also become a double-edged sword when things start to go south with the
mind and body associating that routine with negative outcomes and reinforcing anxieties.
Therefore, it could benefit Cristiano to break out of that vicious cycle by changing his routine.
A great case study on the power of changing a routine is NBA player De’Andre Jordan
of the Brooklyn Nets.
Prior to the 2018-19 season, he was essentially the worst free throw shooter in the league’s
history, hitting only 45.5% (the league average hovers around 75%).
Jordan admitted that his problems were more mental than anything.
He then made minor changes in his free throw routine - immediately grabbing the basketball
after being fouled rather than walking away from the free throw line, asking a player
around him a random question - like “hey, who are you defending” - immediately prior
to the free throw rather than staring at the rim, and staggering his foot position to feel
more comfortable.
Following these changes, he raised his average to 71% and 68% over the past two seasons!
For more details, read excellent NBA writer Kevin O’Connor’s piece on The Ringer.
Cristiano may benefit from adopting a more conventional technique that has a higher margin
of error- like his in-step side spin technique that he’s shown to be quite comfortable
with but only uses infrequently.
To that point, he felt comfortable enough to use and execute it in a high pressure situation
on a late game-tying goal vs Spain in 2018.
This switch could allow Cristiano to focus on one technique and perfect it -
like Lionel Messi has done in recent years and become an absolute beast.
I made a video on his technique a few weeks ago.
Cristiano taking a break from free kick duties could help him reset, regain confidence and
wash away the mental stains of the past six years; especially if that next chapter is
reinforced by moving on to and optimizing a new technique.
It’s like a new beginning.
I’ve personally seen this strategy work for high level athletes across multiple sports
- football, basketball, tennis, baseball - who had a previously successful approach turn
into an extended rut that required a new perspective.
The reality for Cristiano that is it’s been six years of a negative trendline.
Something isn’t working and needs to change.
If he still can’t work out the issues, the worst case scenario is that he permanently
gives up free kick duties to Miralem Pjanic and Paulo Dybala, allowing Cristiano to focus
on what he still does extremely well - be a dynamic, game-changing force in open play.
That’s a wrap for this video.
Thanks for watching.
My goal is to provide you with in-depth, evidence based, narrative free analysis and you can
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