Hey, it’s Raj from 3CB Performance.
Barcelona and Argentine legend Lionel Messi needs no introduction, he’s arguably the
greatest to ever lace them up.
One of his most jaw-dropping abilities comes from set pieces and the ability to deliver
stunningly precise free-kicks from all over the pitch.
In this video, I’ll break down the key elements of Messi’s free kick from run-up to follow
through and mind-body feedback.
The angle Messi takes to the ball generally varies depending on the distance and side
of the free kick.
The nearer and towards the right the free-kick placement, the flatter (more acute) his angle
tends to be
whereas the further the or towards the left placement, the less acute the angle.
Messi will vary the run-up angle to keep teams and keepers off the scent.
The final sequence of Messi’s run-up nearly always consists of a short stride with his
right leg, short stride with his left leg, and then a long stride third step to plant
the right foot next to the ball.
This step pattern does two things:
Firstly, it creates a rhythm which allows his free kick muscle memory t-o take over
and mitigate external interference (crowd noise, environment, etc) and internal interference
(anxiety, pressure, negative self-talk, etc).
This is scientifically referred to as “motor priming” or “priming the system”.
Secondly, the elongated final stride and firm plant with his right foot creates a firm base
of support and balance - with Messi engaging the muscles along his entire right leg,
hip,
core and trunk
- and longer swing through distance for his left leg.
The result is increased power AND control on his strike.
There are instances where he’ll vary the initial steps of his run-up - for example,
using a staggered stance with his right foot forward to substitute for the first short right stride
or taking mini-steps prior - but it always ends with the short right, short left
long right pattern.
The early variations may again be to deceive the opposition.
As Messi swings through and makes contact, it’ s almost as if he’s falling away from
the ball.
That position unlocks arguably the key piece to Messi’s free-kick: hip mobility.
With his hips shifted to the right, his left hip and leg are now in abduction (moving away midline)
external rotation (outward rotation)
and flexion (coming upwards).
This position of abduction-external rotation-flexion is the “open-pack” position of the hip,
which allows for the highest amount of hip mobility - namely because the hip ligaments
are put on slack.
This distinctive technique allows Messi to open up his hip to an unheralded range, get
around the the ball to make clean contact with his instep (more on that in a second)
and generates more power by maximizing a “elastic recoil” effect with key muscles - namely,
the adductors and internal rotators - in which these muscles are first stretched out like
a spring and then recoil to generate significant force as he swings through.
Messi uses prototypical instep form to lock his left ankle and foot to create a rigid
lever for transferring energy to the ball and create a platform for generating power
and spin.
Generally, spin comes from the contact point and follow-through.
There’s side (lateral) spin which creates left or right movement and top (anterior)
spin which creates dipping movement.
What sets Messi’s free kicks apart is his ability to modulate the two spins.
Whether Messi is striking the ball centrally to create more dip and balance top spin with
side spin and top spin or he’s trying to sharply curl the ball by generating heavy
side-spin, he’s able to get around the ball with an open hip, make contact and rub through
with his instep diagonally,
use an uncanny ability & feel to almost scoop the ball which
allows him to further shape the curve and manage a short, controlled, balanced follow-through
so his legs and hips don’t interfere with any of the work that he just did.
Look at how quiet his lower body is here after the strike.
Lastly - and I wanted to point this out because it’s almost ridiculous - as Messi’s follow-through
carries him to the right, he essentially rolls off his right ankle to maintain a smooth thrust.
If I couldn’t see the rest of the picture, I’d think this was a picture of someone
spraining their ankle.
Extraordinary balance, mobility, and control.
As Messi makes contact with the ball, he angles his torso downwards to create a V-like effect
between his upper and lower body.
Keeping the chest down does two main things:
Firstly, it prevents him from opening up too early and getting underneath the ball to sky it. it.
Secondly, it creates a lower center of mass which increases balance and stability.
After Messi picks where he wants to place the ball, his eyes lock-in on his strike point
and his steady, short run-up limits head movement.
These two factors allow for increased visual time, clarity, and focus on that strike point.
This is critical because vision transmits a ton of information to the brain during movement,
especially to optimize balance, and increasing research is showing that in target sports
- like football - the more time the eye spends on relevant factors - the strike point in
this case - the better the outcome.
For more info on that, look up “quiet eye training”.
After Messi strikes the ball, his eyes continue to track the ball in-flight
all the way into the net.
This may seem basic but it’s actually quite important because it’s a key feedback and
learning mechanism.
Every time Messi strikes the ball and tracks it - whether it’s during practice or during
a game - he’s unconsciously processing the result of his movements,
connecting it back to the movement sequence,
and storing that within his internal movement database.
I think of it as a constant feedback loop.
An example of this in a different sport is Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry
- arguably the greatest shooter of all-time - who after releasing a jumpshot tracks the
flight of the ball
all the way to the eventual outcome.
Lastly, Messi’s free-kick sequence - from run-up to body shape to the strike to follow
through - is very compact and consistent.
This results in less variables to control which means less variance in the movement
and greater consistency, effectiveness and added deception.
This repeatability is a common theme shared by the best free-kick takers in the world.
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
always find me on IG and Twitter @3CBPerformance.
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