The 2018 World Cup gets into full swing Friday with Uruguay-Egypt, Iran-Morocco and Spain-Portugal, featuring some of the world's best players.

Newly appointed Zinedine Zidane has taken a different tack in establishing his seniority at the Bernabeu after reportedly "schooling" poster boy Cristiano Ronaldo in a free-kick showdown.

Ronaldo's free kick looked a lot like how a pitcher in baseball fools a hitter with a vicious split-finger fastball, which appears to "roll off the table" at the last second.

Ronaldo responds to critics with venomous free kick, four-goal ... Email MADRID, SPAIN - MARCH 05: Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid celebrates after scoring his 2nd goal during the La Liga match ...

Ronaldo took 43 attempts to score his first free kick for Juventus, and Pjanic and Dybala are arguably far better options from set pieces ...

Watch the free kick here. 9. A Free Kick Not Too Far for Ronaldo. Commentator Clive Tyldesley infamously said, "It’s too far for Ronaldo to think about it" after United won a free kick from 40 ...

Manager Zinedine Zidane described Ronaldo's strike as "one of the best goals in history" after the game, but the Frenchman insisted his goal against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002 was still better.

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo is considered one of the greatest free-kick-takers in the world, but stats suggest he might have lost his mojo. Spanish newspaper AS, citing the Twitter account ...