At the World Cup and EURO stages, Ronaldo only scored once from a free kick. Meanwhile, Messi has scored 5 goals from free kicks at the World Cup and Copa America.

Ronaldo has taken 60 direct free kicks at the World Cup and EURO stages but has only scored one goal. Photo: Alamy.

Ronaldo has taken 60 direct free kicks at the World Cup and EURO stages but has only scored one goal. Photo: Alamy .

Despite having players with good free kick ability like Bruno Fernandes or Bernardo Silva, the Portuguese team still causes controversy when always allowing Ronaldo to take set pieces within the shooting range.

Statistics from Opta show that Ronaldo probably shouldn’t be enjoying this privilege. Specifically, by the end of the match against Slovenia in the round of 16 of EURO 2024, Ronaldo had taken 60 direct free kicks at the World Cup and EURO stages.

However, in total, only one goal was scored. The only time Ronaldo scored a free kick came in a dramatic 3-3 draw with Spain in the 2018 World Cup group stage.

Going into more detail, out of 60 free kicks, 22 hit the wall and 37 were blocked or missed the goal.

With only 1/60 goals scored from free kicks, CR7’s conversion rate in Portugal’s shirt only reached a modest 1.7%.

Statistics on Ronaldo and Messi’s free-kick ability at the national team level. Photo: Opta.

Statistics on Ronaldo and Messi’s free-kick ability at the national team level. Photo: Opta.

Statistics on Ronaldo and Messi’s free-kick ability at the national team level. Photo: Opta.

Meanwhile, Lionel Messi, although having fewer free kicks than Ronaldo, has a significantly higher conversion rate.

Accordingly, the Argentine superstar has 5 goals after 53 free kicks at the World Cup and Copa America, achieving a success rate of nearly 9.5%.

Not only is Ronaldo’s free kick poor, his finishing ability at EURO 2024 is a big disappointment.

The 39-year-old superstar has yet to score a goal despite having 20 shots, the most of any player participating in the tournament in Germany.