Rafa Benitez Denies Rumour He Tried to Teach Cristiano Ronaldo Free-Kicks

Rafa Benitez has denied rumours that he tried to teach Cristiano Ronaldo how to better take free-kicks and Luka Modric to stop passing with the outside of his foot during his time as Real Madrid boss. 

The reports emerged after Benitez was sacked by Madrid in January 2016, just seven months after he took charge of the club, per Goal's Joe Wright.

On Ronaldo's free-kicks, he told Marca's Juan Castro and Alberto Rubio:

"It's a lie. At no time did I do that. The only time we discussed free-kicks was in Australia. I told him we analysed how he took them at Manchester United.

"At no time did I tell him how to take them, nor did I tell [Luka] Modric to stop passing with the outside of his foot."

He added on Modric: "All I told him was that when there's a simple pass with the inside of the foot, he had to use the inside of his foot because it's easier for his team-mate. I also used the outside of my foot when I player, but for 10 to 15-metre passes. But it's easy to spread lies."

Ronaldo has scored 53 times from free-kicks in his career, far more than most players can only dream of, even if he's still some way short of Juninho Pernambucano's record of 77.

However, the 35-year-old has been far less effective from dead-ball situations in recent years:

It has been an issue during his time at Juventus, because his presence in the side means free-kick specialists Paulo Dybala and Miralem Pjanic have fewer opportunities to go for goal themselves.

As for Modric, the Croatian is one of the world's best passers of the ball, and he won the Ballon d'Or in 2018.

At 34 he's no longer the force he once was, but he dictates Real Madrid's play from deep and can run games for them in midfield.

Benitez was appointed in 2015 to replace Carlo Ancelotti, who was fired after Los Blancos failed to win La Liga, the UEFA Champions League or the Copa del Rey during his second season in charge.

The Spaniard won 17 of his 25 matches in charge of Real, losing just three times, but one of those defeats was a 4-0 humbling by Barcelona in El Clasico.

During his time as a manager Benitez has won two La Liga titles, the Champions League, the UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup twice and several domestic cups too, but his pragmatic style made him a poor fit at the Santiago Bernabeu.

His replacement, Zinedine Zidane, guided the team to three consecutive Champions League titles and La Liga in 2016-17, among other honours.