FIFA 16: Top 10 Strongest Ultimate Team Players

Now the effectiveness of pace has been somewhat quashed in FIFA 16 Ultimate Team, physical strength plays a bigger role in assuming control of matches. 

Players now bounce off each other, can wade through their marker and will gain leverage by asserting their presence.

Here, we've ranked the top 10 FUT cards based on their in-game strength. If two players are equal, the next stat judged is their physicality.

Read on to find out who could smash their controller not by throwing it at a wall, but by ripping it to shreds with their bare hands.

10. Wilfried Bony (ST), Manchester City

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Strength: 94

Physical: 85

Overall Rating: 81

Wilfried Bony is the only Premier League player to make it into the strongest Top 10, and perhaps even more surprisingly, he's just one of two strikers.

The former Swansea City man earned a move to Manchester City by imposing himself as an effective battering ram last season. Despite limited chances at the Etihad Stadium, his sturdy frame and strong heading (84) ensure he ranks among the game's most surprisingly useful goalscorers. 

9. Moustapha Sall (CB), Saint-Etienne

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Strength: 94

Physical: 86

Overall Rating: 78

Sneaking in ahead of Bony is a centre-back who stands 6'3" tall and possesses the all-important high defensive work rate. Sall's lack of pace (52) shouldn't worry players too much, as EA Sports took conscious steps to weaken the effectiveness of speed in this year's game.

With 88-rated aggression, Sall could prove to be a grounded alternative to David Luiz and Thiago Silva in Ligue 1 squads.

8. Kendall Waston (CB), Vancouver Whitecaps

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Strength: 94

Physical: 87

Overall Rating: 74

Kendall Waston has picked up 16 yellow and one red card in his last 36 MLS appearances, per WhoScored.com.

He is 6'5" and extremely combative, something FUT16 has picked up on by giving him 94-rated aggression, equal with Pepe (Real Madrid), Papy Djilobodji (Chelsea), Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution) and Steven Lenhart (San Jose Earthquakes) as FUT16's most ready to throw down.

No player outranks Waston when it comes to simply craving the ball.

7. Abdoul Ba (CB), Lens

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Strength: 95

Physical: 72

Overall Rating: 64

Looking at Abdoul Ba's aggression (49) seems hilarious after discussing Waston. He's a different kind of defender on FUT16, but someone who can be relied on to dominate most lower-tier strikers.

Ba actually holds a number of silver-rated defensive stats. His standing tackle (71) and sliding variation (66) underline a solid, no-nonsense player who can form the effective base of a top-rated bronze team.

6. Felipe Baloy (CB), Club Atlas

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Strength: 95

Physical: 80

Overall Rating: 72

At 34 years old, it's conceivable Felipe Baloy should start to lose battles of strength against his opponents.

He's having none of it.

The Panama captain has a warrior spirit and is a must for any silver-rated Mexican league sides.

Baloy's medium attacking and defensive work rates mean he won't be pulled out of position when controlled by the AI. He should quickly face up against incoming strikers and make sure they don't have gaping holes to exploit.

5. Roman Torres (CB), Seattle Sounders

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Strength: 95

Physical: 82

Overall Rating: 71

Following on from Baloy is a man you can partner him with. Roman Torres just sneaks ahead of his countryman on account of his physicality, but he also plays with the same neutral attacking and defensive rates.

Why not link Baloy, Torres and Waston? Their combined strength could take down the Hulk (and we're not talking about the Zenit St Petersburg striker) and would be formed with decent chemistry.

4. George Elokobi (CB), Colchester United

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Strength: 95

Physical: 86

Overall Rating: 70

George Elokobi's strength is amplified by his low attacking and high defensive instincts on FUT16.

Essentially a sweeper who doesn't move forward unless an all-out assault is ordered on the opposition's goal, the former Wolverhampton Wanderers monster is more than capable of suffocating possession away from forwards who would likely breeze past him in real life.

Unfortunately, he's stuck in the middle ground between silver and gold cards, meaning many will overlook his physical strength for a more well-rounded player.

3. Jamison Olave (CB), Real Salt Lake

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Strength: 95

Physical: 85

Overall Rating: 71

What is it with powerful MLS silvers on FUT16? If Waston or Torres don't take your fancy in the strength department, Jamison Olave may provide the answer.

Olave has the added bonus of decent pace (74) and neutral work rates, meaning he's remarkably well-rounded for a second-tier star.

Considering just how quick some of the American division's strikers are, there's one hell of an MLS team in the offing on FUT16.

2. Chris Samba (CB), Dynamo Moscow

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Strength: 96

Physical: 82

Overall Rating: 78

What is there to say about Chris Samba? He can hardly pass (44), offers no agility (34) and is bound by the effects of gravity (31-rated jumping).

Yet, not only could he lift you, he could probably launch you into the stratosphere.

The former Blackburn Rovers leader is unlikely to be shown much love on FUT16 due to the poor foundations of his gold card. But those who do pick Big Chris deserve a handshake. A nice, bone-crunching handshake from the man himself.

1. Adebayo Akinfenwa (ST), AFC Wimbledon

Strength: 98

Physical: 81

Overall Rating: 64

Adebayo Akinfenwa has become a cult hero in the FUT world. So much so, EA Sports regularly utilise his charms to help promote the game (as seen above). His low attacking and defensive work rates are hilarious and make him largely useless in the game, but I wouldn't be the one to tell Akinfenwa to his face.

Known as The Beast, Akinfenwa's physique is more akin to a professional weightlifter than footballer. He could twiddle Samba on his little finger, tear goal posts out of the ground and fashion them into a pair of dumbbells for his day off.

Such is his impact on the FIFA community, it's entirely possible Akinfenwa will one day return as a FUT Legend, despite representing the likes of Torquay United, Gillingham and Northampton Town.

All FIFA 16 statistics in this article are provided by FUThead.