Rabona

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In association football, the rabona is a method of kicking the football whereby the kicking leg is wrapped around the back of the standing leg – effectively with one's legs crossed.

There are several reasons why a player might opt to strike the ball this way: for example, a left-footed striker advancing towards the goal slightly on the right side rather than having the goal straight in front may feel that his shot power or accuracy with his right foot is inadequate, so will perform a Rabona in order to take a better shot. Another scenario could be a left-footed winger sending a cross while playing on the right side of the pitch without having to turn first. A good example of this is Diego Maradona, who often made use of this move for both short and long passes.^{[citation needed]}

Another reason why a player could perform a rabona might be to confuse a defending player, or simply to show off his own ability – as it is considered a skillful trick at any level.

Although this move become popular in recent times, it was first introduced by the Italian player Giovanni Roccotelli in the 1970s, for Ascoli Calcio. At that time this move was simply called a "crossed-kick".^[1]^[2]

The rabona is also a dance step used in the tango. The dance step takes its name from the football kick.^[3]