Over the years, Manchester City have had several players who are excellent at taking free-kicks.
The name that instantly springs to mind is Yaya Toure, who scored an impressive four free-kicks during the 2013/14 season — a campaign where he bagged 24 goals in all competitions.
Kevin De Bruyne was excellent at taking set-pieces in general and during his time in a City shirt, his exceptional strikes from free-kicks against Cardiff City in 2018 and Chelsea in 2020 stand out.
David Silva, who De Bruyne lauded, was excellent at whipping a free-kick into the box or in the back of the net as well.
Ryan Gravenberch says Kevin De Bruyne is the best free-kick taker in football history
Growing up, Liverpool star Ryan Gravenberch must have studied all three midfield greats.
The 22-year-old must have witnessed Manchester City dominate English football for years, with even some of their other players such as Aleksandar Kolarov and James Milner being threats from free-kick situations.
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Kevin De Bruyne of Napoli smiling during a press conference
Photo by Antonio Balasco/KONTROLAB/LightRocket via Getty Images
Gravenberch picked De Bruyne when it came to taking free-kicks, saying: “Free kicks?”
“Oh, I can’t say [Lionel] Messi twice, then I will have to go for Kevin De Bruyne.”
Kevin De Bruyne’s free-kick record
Gravenberch seems like a student of the game, considering he knows how dangerous De Bruyne can be when he lines up for a free-kick.
KEVIN DE BRUYNE’S FREE-KICK RECORD
CLUB GOALS
GENK 1
WERDER BREMEN 1
WOLFSBURG 2
MANCHESTER CITY 8
NAPOLI 1
BELGIUM 1
TOTAL 14
The Belgian has scored 14 direct free-kicks in his career.
De Bruyne opened his account for Napoli with a free-kick against Sassuolo on the weekend, which justifies Gravenberch’s claim.