Messi 'almost sprains ankle' with every free-kick - Secret to his bizarre skill

A new report reveals that Barcelona star Lionel Messi has trained his body such that he almost sprains his own ankle while aiming for a perfect free-kick.

Messi has trained his body to almost "sprain his own ankle" to perfect his free-kick technique. The Barcelona forward is one of the best set-piece takers in world football having scored his 50th career free-kick earlier this season.

But what is the secret behind Messi's success from set pieces? Well Dr Rajpal Brar has some serious insight into Messi's technique and his totally unique way of striking the ball.

Speaking on a Squawka podcast, he explained: “When Messi strikes the ball, he shifts his hip to the right. He really moves his hips to the right as he’s striking to open up his left strike leg.

“And what that does on his plant leg is that it shifts all the weight to the outside of the foot.

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"So then when he follows through and he’s striking the ball - that left leg coming from left to right - now everything is going onto the outside of his ankle almost like what happens when you sprain your ankle.

"We call it ‘inversion sprain’ when it twists inwards - it’s that same force. You have all that force on the outside of your ankle and it twists inwards.

"But in Messi’s case, he’s trained himself and his body to control that motion."

Lionel Messi free-kick technique: Barcelona man uses inversion sprain technique

When Lionel Messi follows through while striking the ball, everything appears to be focused on his ankle just like the time when a person sprains his ankle. This technique was referred to as ‘inversion sprain’ by the doctor. However, this technique ought not to be an easy one, as it is likely to lead to an ankle injury. 

In another bizarre quirk by the mini maestro, it was revealed that Messi completely ignores the ball in the opening few minutes of a match to scout out his opposition.

Talking to the Financial Times, ex-Barca boss Ernesto Valverde revealed how the No10 “takes a reconnaissance walk” around the opposition defence.

There, he notes exactly each man’s position. Valverde said: “Then, as the game advances, he gets in little by little.

“But he knows perfectly where the rivals’ weaknesses are.”

An angle of 50 degrees & Messi effect

An in-depth report by MARCA analysed the different ways Messi strikes the ball, but this one technique proves particularly interesting. When taking a free-kick, Messi’s leg has an angle of 50 degrees, meaning he plants almost his entire boot on the ground before striking the ball, giving him greater stability and control in the shot.

Researchers at the University of Barcelona – that’s right, even researchers are prying into the “Messi effect” – have said he uses the Magnus Effect to find consistency in his free-kicks, a phenomenon whereby the rotation of a body (the ball) generates a force perpendicular to the line of motion, affecting the trajectory.

How’s that for skill. We may not be able to play football at the moment, but if you see anyone at the local park grimacing in pain as they attempt to “sprain” their ankle in a bid to become the next Messi, know that they won’t be alone in their pursuit of greatness.

Messi's pose for the free-kick is similar like watching a ballerina taking a bow after a performance - compare the ballerina’s right ankle position with Messi’s - it’s definitely an art...