Who are you choosing?? 
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My choices for best free-kick takers -
1. David Beckham:
Beckham is widely regarded as one of the greatest free-kick takers of all time. His ability to bend the ball with precision and power earned him many memorable goals during his time with Manchester United.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo:
Ronaldo is renowned for his athleticism and technique, and he has consistently been a threat from free-kicks. His ability to generate immense power and dip on the ball has led to some incredible goals during his time with Manchester United and later with Real Madrid.
3. Thierry Henry:
The former Arsenal striker had a remarkable ability to place the ball accurately and with pace. He scored several memorable free-kicks during his time in the Premier League.
4. Gianfranco Zola:
Zola, the former Chelsea player, was known for his technical skills and finesse on free-kicks. He scored many stunning goals from set-pieces during his time in the Premier League.
5. Juninho Pernambucano:
Although he played for Middlesbrough for a relatively short period, Juninho left a lasting impact as a free-kick specialist. His ability to generate swerve and dip on the ball made him a formidable threat from set-pieces.
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James Ward Prowse
His first direct free kick in the Premier League came on 2 November 2013, just under 10 years ago. Since then, he’s converted a mind blowing 14.5% of free-kicks, meaning 17 out of 117 tries! This record is undoubtedly way higher than any other player to have scored at least nine free kicks across the top five European leagues in this timeframe. Putting this into perspective, Cristiano Ronaldo has a conversion rate of 4.9% and even the king of free kicks, Lionel Messi has only 9.5%.
Even golden glove winner, Emi Martinez had to admit he is one of a kind when it comes to set pieces 
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James Ward-Prowse scored his 17th Premier League free-kick goal in Southampton’s surprise win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on 18 February 2023. The strike was the only goal of the game in a 1-0 victory, and the sixth time in Premier League history that JWP had scored a winner with a direct free kick.
13 of his 17 free-kick goals have come away from home, including the last eight in a row, meaning that he’s the most prolific scorer of Premier League free kicks in away matches – two more than Beckham managed on the road (11).
He’s no Lionel Messi, though. Since Ward-Prowse’s first free-kick attempt in 2013, Messi’s scored almost double the number of free kicks (32). However, Messi has attempted nearly three times as many shots from free kicks (336 vs. 117).
Since 2006-07, when Opta has detailed free kick data from all five of the top European leagues, only Messi (41) and Ronaldo (31) have scored more free-kick goals in league competition, but the only player that beats Ward-Prowse’s conversion rate from these scenarios is Brazilian midfielder Diego, formerly of Atlético Madrid, Juventus, Werder Bremen and Wolfsburg. He was able to convert a brilliant 15.5% of his free kick shots into goals across this period.
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