If Theodore Roosevelt played soccer: striker, rated 87

Theodore Roosevelt as a soccer player: scouting report

Theodore Roosevelt leads the line, and no legend in this pool has a better claim on the word strenuous. He boxed at Harvard, worked cattle on a ranch in the Dakota Badlands and later explored an uncharted river in the Brazilian rainforest. A striker spends ninety minutes being kicked, pulled and shoved by center backs, and he would treat that as a pleasant afternoon. Physical strength is the best part of his card.

Dribbling is the next best mark, so he does not just hold the ball up; he turns and drives straight at the back line, carrying defenders with him. His defending is just as strong, which makes him a ferocious presser who hunts down center backs on the ball. He also cared about how games were played: in 1905 he called college football leaders to the White House to make the sport safer, a push that helped lead to the body now known as the NCAA. He was the first American to win a Nobel Prize, so the armband would sit comfortably on him too.

Shooting is the honest weakness. His goals come from power and persistence, the rebound smashed in from close range, rather than curling efforts from distance. Pair him with a sharp finishing winger who can attack the space he opens, and a creative midfielder who plays early balls into his feet. Center back and central midfield are both strong second options, which makes him one of the most versatile picks in the pool. Draft him early as the engine of your front line.

Plays like A battering ram center forward who never stops running at defenders

Put Theodore Roosevelt in your lineup

11 rolls, a starting eleven, 38 matches. Can you go 38-0? Free, no account.