Asadollah Rafiee

This charismatic Iranian engine-room anchor dominates the midfield with unrelenting aggression and sheer physicality, even if he can be somewhat sluggish when shifting gears. Before every match, he demands that his teammates spray his boots with rosewater, a bizarre superstition the squad now embraces as essential to his confidence. He remains a total nightmare for opponents as long as his kit smells like a floral garden.