Juninho Pernambucano has gone down in history as a dead-ball doyen after converting more freekicks (77) than anyone else on the planet, but a goalkeeper currently starring in English football’s sixth tier had a hand in helping him to master his technique.
Maidstone United shot-stopper Lucas Covolan (below) was just a youngster rising through the ranks at Vasco da Gama when the Brazil international – keen to practise set pieces after training sessions – would ask him to stand between the sticks.