Best FPL Defenders at Each Price Point for The 2022/23 Season

This article is written by Sankalp Nanda(@UnderstandingF8) who finished with an Overall FPL Rank of 355 and India No.11 in the 2021/22 season. This article will be a part of 4-article series titled- “Winning the Battle of Price Points“. In the second part of the series, he will be analyzing the “Best FPL Defenders at each price point for 2022/23 season” which will be followed by articles on midfielders and forwards in the coming days. Read the first one: Best FPL Goalkeepers at each price point for 2022/23 Season

I remember last season when I wrote the article on “Big At The Back”– it was the cornerstone of a very successful turnaround of the season for me using my Wildcard 1. Cut forward to this season’s start, BATB seems like the most common approach among FPL managers. Most templates being floated around have everyone hopping on Liverpool, City & Chelsea fullbacks and then looking at how to use the spare money to accommodate Salah & Haaland. This would have been unthinkable 4 seasons ago but 4 seasons is such a long time in FPL.

The purpose of this series is not to talk on structures but to provide optimum solutions at all price points for any structure. For this part, we will be looking at the most talked about position- Defenders.

Before we begin, I would like to highlight why defense is such a critical position and the talk of the town nowadays. Let us use the fantastic article written by WGTA known popularly as Talisman Article.

Link to all our 2022/23 Pre Season articles including a transfer tracker of all new signings, all team pre-season friendly updates, team previews, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, and more. Completely free to access as well!

Why are Defenders more Popular in FPL nowadays?

Via **Talisman Theory – 2021/22 Report | Who Got The Assist(WGTA)**

Overall, over the last 2 seasons the Top 200 Club seems to have started declining. Last season, we had only 5 players in the Top 200 out of which 2 were premium defenders costing 7.5m or less this season. To go a bit deeper, if we look at Top 10 players last season, we have 4 defenders coming into the list. Just compare it with Top 10 players list in the seasons before-

1 def in 20/21 (Dallas)
1 def in 19/20 ( Trent)
3 defs in 18/19 ( Liverpool trio)
0 in 17/18 & 16/17

We also have 98 players who scored between 100-200 points of which 28 were defenders. This means around 30% of the players who are among the top scorers now come from the defense. This is very unique as it shows beyond the top teams as well, we have started seeing value in defense who continue to be one of the cheapest assets to own in the squad.

So, now that we have established how important this position is, let us get into the mad rush a bit more before looking at the price points.

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Top 10 Defenders from 21/22 season based on FPL Points

Top FPL Defenders based on TSB % > 10% (22/23)

Top FPL Defenders based on TSB % > 10% ~ 2022/23 season

As we can see Trent & Cancelo rule the roost ownership wise but James & Perisic aren’t left far behind at all. This 4 with ownership very close to 40% seems to have formed the early template followed by the final choice of managers- 5m def, 4.5m or 4m def. Does this correlate with the fixtures ahead- let’s find out.

Further Read: FPL Fixture Swing Analysis & Best Player Rotation for 22/23 FPL Season

Best Defensive Teams from FPL GW1 to 6

FPL Defenders Price Points

FPL Defenders have 8 price points so it is more stretched than goalkeepers but still not as stretched as midfielders/ strikers- so let’s dive in.

7.5 Million FPL Defender

Seems fair that Trent is the only player at this price point though am sure Cancelo has a good shout as well. To be honest, this feels underpriced considering Bowen has been bumped to 8.5m with 1 200+ season in midfield & the 8m bracket consists of players with 180+ scores. He has 54% ownership but combine it with the fixtures, it is a no-brainer for me.

Winner- Trent (by default)

Further Read: Best Premium FPL Defenders (£6.0+) for the 2022/23 FPL Season

7.0 Million FPL Defenders

Best 7.0 Million FPL Defender ~ Cancelo and Robertson

We have 2 contenders here- Cancelo & Robbo. The diverse ownership bemuses me with Cancelo ownership being higher by around 34%. Quality wise very little separates the two- Robertson is a known and reliable FPL asset and is as likely to get a 180+ score again. What I do feel goes against his favour is the need to diversify the risks. Going 3, 7m+ defenders is not easy at all and requires high sacrifice in other areas & if you are going for 2 of these 3 defenders- City+Liverpool makes sense.

Can we go Cancelo & Robbo combo saving that 0.5m- I would say yes at some point of time when the difference in value gets much higher than 0.5m- expecting it to be close to 1m plus by the end of GW6. Last season, I went Trent less for close to 7-8 GWs and used the Robbo- Matip combo to counter it. I think we can do the same at some point of time but beginning of the season, Trent & Cancelo seem to be the wise choice.

Winner- Cancelo

Further Read: Talisman Theory – 2021/22 Report | Who Got The Assist(WGTA)

6.5 Million FPL Defenders

Best 6.5 Million FPL Defender ~ Vrijil Van Dijk

The question to ask can be why not VVD instead of Robbo & there is very little to say no to it. Going fullbacks seem to be the easier trend nowadays in FPL but I think given the 5 rotation rule, CBs can get field time & higher bonus points than before, especially ones like VVD. As things stand now, he is the solo person in this category with just 11.7% ownership. Looking at the fixtures, he is a good shout no doubt especially if you want to differentiate against James/Perisic owners but at a higher premium.

Winner- VVD (by default)

6.0 Million FPL Defenders

Best 6.0 Million FPL Defender ~ Chilwell

6m- Options available are Chilwell, James, Matip, Laporte & Dias.

Current ownership is highly skewed towards James while Chilwell and Dias are closer to 10%. Looking at the fixtures, I feel this is very hopeful and an indication of the bandwagon. I find it difficult to see a Chelsea CS in the first 3-4 games ( maximum 1) & without a CS, defenders find it very difficult to get into double digits. This holds good for both Chilwell and James but I do believe a change in formation if happens to Chelsea (4 at back), it will benefit Chilwell more as an FPL asset with his tendency to run beyond the winger and occupy the far post like areas.

The issue with Matip is the chance for Konate to shine this season as he was used primarily in UCL last season and Matip played in PL. I would wait and watch how this develops this season before jumping there.

Dias & Laporte seem to be perfect matches in this segment though Laporte did not travel to USA and is said to be behind in match fitness. This makes it very easy for my choice in the price segment. Not much popular with 10% ownership but it’s a city defender with the best fixtures ahead of them. Dias is the pick that really comes close to me for a selection, especially on a short-term WC, to begin with & the advantage is that you get to decide which Chelsea FB to go with.

Winner- Chilwell

Further Read: Best Chelsea FPL Players | Chelsea Preview | 2022/23 FPL Season

5.5 Million FPL Defenders

5.5m- Thiago Silva, Alonso, Koulibaly, Stones, Perisic

With Alonso possibly moving out of Chelsea- it will be down to new defense Silva, Koulibaly & possibly Kounde to showcase the CS potential of Chelsea assets. The possibility of a 3-man Chelsea defense might make them attractive again but I think it’s a solid wait and watch.

Unfortunately, Stones has been forgotten as a City asset last season as he had a fantastic end to 20-21 season and was considered a strong starter last season. This might be true again if Laporte is yet to regain his fitness levels but Pep also retained Ake promising some gametime. It is a wait-and-watch for me here as well.

Overall ownership for Perisic is already high and that’s considering his attacking potential. Conte had shaped up Spurs defense very well last season and is expected to continue with a 343 going forward. Perisic plays the role of wingback and is hence an OOP here. Given the possibility of spurs being very close to Chelsea in expected CS as seen in fixtures as well, price point wise Perisic seems a clear winner here. The only con is how he starts but Conte’s recent comments seem to be in his favor expecting mins in the upcoming friendly already.

Winner- Ivan Perisic

Further Read: FPL Fixture Swing Analysis & Best Player Rotation for 22/23 FPL Season

5.0 Million FPL Defenders

5.0m- Looking at the best-owned assets Cash, Trippier, Cucurella, Gabriel/Tierney, Coady, Doherty/Romero

I think 5 million is a great price bracket for FPL defenders which has somehow been overlooked this year among the noise to go big at back. Only 2 of these assets have ownership of more than 10%- Cash & Trippier.

Both Cash & Tripper are expected to be the typical fullback who gives you points via attacking returns, however attraction for me when going for such players is that it comes with the added bonus of clean sheets. This does not seem to be the case as both Newcastle and Aston Villa are in the bottom 6 when it comes to the defensive fixture ticker.

Wolves and Arsenal have the best defensive fixtures and hence it is easy to see some of the options that are ahead of us. I think Gabriel & Coady are a strong shout but Tierney can be someone not to jump on because he is coming back from a huge injury and Arsenal definitely will ease him into the league.

Last comes the Doherty/ Romero combo at 5.0m who I feel are the best choices in the price segment. Conte is known to be a strong believer in good defensive structures, something we saw Spurs implement in the second half of the season. Doherty if available- is easily the best choice in the bracket considering his potential to combine Clean sheets & Attacking returns. Romero is a decent substitute for me as Romero will continue to provide Clean sheets and is a surety in terms of 90 odd mins per match. For now, the winner seems to be clear.

Winner- Matt Doherty

Note- Spurs defense is something to look at even if we ignore Perisic, I feel the idea of a double defense choice from Spurs makes sense at 5m bracket given their huge potential to churn out Clean sheets and decent opening fixtures. Trippier is someone to definitely look once Newcastle fixtures turn better (GW 7-12) making him a great WC-1 pick rather than now.

Further Read: Best FPL Budget Enablers for the 2022-23 FPL Season | FPL Paz

4.5 Million FPL Defenders

4.5m- Best owned options are Tomiyasu/White, Mings, Botman, Justin, Lamptey, Johnny

As you can see mostly the pickings seem much worse this year at 4.5m as most CBs have even been pushed to the 5m price bracket. Given Tomiyasu’s injury concerns, I think White starts again as a strong choice in this bracket. I feel over the short term Arsenal’s defense looks the best option in this price bracket.

Mings, Botman & Justin come up next from ownership POV- they just don’t look as attractive from CS POV for GW 1-6.

Lamptey & Jonny are the left-field choices in this bracket. Lamptey if fit is actually a good punt given the fixtures look good as well as the possibility of some attacking returns. However, I think Johnny (who for some reason has only 1.3% OR) is perhaps the best alternative to Arsenal defenders in this price bracket and a strong logical choice. I think their pattern of easy home games makes it something to definitely try.

Winner- Johnny Castro

Further Read: How I landed up my first ever Top 500 finish | Sankalp’s column | FPL Tips

4.0 Million FPL Defenders

Best 4.0 Million FPL Defender ~ Neco Williams

4.0m- Best owned options are Neco Williams, Vestergaard & Patterson

Neco is already leading the charts with around 21% OR and mostly because of his attacking talent and the strong possibility of starts. He is a sensible choice in this price bracket as most other options don’t seem to be a starter. The only con here is if someone else comes up or he doesn’t start, given the high sales, we will see a huge price drop as we saw for Tsimikas last year.

Patterson has a higher possibility of starting than Vestergaard considering the rumors of Lampard looking to freshen up the fullbacks/attacking opportunities from width. Patterson was bought for 12m last season but has been mostly injured last year. The pre-season friendlies have Seen him get a lot of minutes but while his speed comes out, so does the errors.

Winner- Neco Williams

Further Read: Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for the 2022/23 FPL Season

Next up, we get into the potential minefield that is midfield but that for some reason hasn’t been as attractive this season as before. We will discuss the best players in each price point and see whether it makes sense to look purely at lower ones to complement the Egyptian King!!

Further reads from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of the 2022/23 FPL Season

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Link to all our FPL Forwards, FPL Midfielders, FPL Defenders, and FPL Goalkeepers series of blogs including the best 4.0 million defenders, and 4.5 Million midfielders.

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Bio
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Sankalp Nanda

Football fan for around 20 years, seriously playing FPL for 3 seasons now. Love discussing Tactics, Formations & using them to become better FPL manager. India's Manager of the week GW-8 this season.

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Best FPL Defenders at Each Price Point for The 2022/23 Season