About the Free Kick
A free kick is the one moment in football when a player has time to plan. There is a wall, a goalkeeper and a goal. This event lets you draw the shot with your finger.
How it works
Put your finger on or near the ball and swipe up the screen. The direction from the start of your swipe to the end sets where the shot is aimed. A yellow trace shows the swipe as you make it.
The shape of the swipe matters as well. If your finger travels in a curve, the ball will bend in the air: it swings out to the side your swipe bulged towards, and comes back to finish where the straight line was pointing.
Between the ball and the goal stands a wall of five players. If the ball's path passes through them, it is blocked. The goalkeeper, in yellow, drifts along the line until you shoot, then stays put. A shot that arrives where he is standing is saved. A shot outside the posts is wide.
Six kicks in all.
Scoring more
Look at the keeper first. He leaves one side of the goal more open than the other. That is your target.
The wall covers the middle. A straight shot at the centre of the goal hits it every time. A straight shot aimed just inside a post will pass the end of the wall.
Use curve to open up the goal. To reach a target hidden behind the wall, start your swipe out to one side and curve it back. The ball goes round the outside.
Swipe smoothly. A slow, wobbly swipe produces an unpredictable bend. One confident stroke is best.
Aim inside the post, not at it. There is no prize for the top corner.
Shoot when the keeper has drifted away from your chosen side.
For swipe-controlled HTML5 games, it gives a real sense of shaping a shot.