Best Premium FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season

Having analysed the options at 4.0 million, 4.5 million and 5.0-5.5 million, it is now time to take a look at the so called ‘premium’ defensive options – the best £6.0 million FPL Defenders. With Trent gone, and Robertson’s stock severely weakened due to his sub-par performances last season and Liverpool’s acquisition of Kerkez from Bournemouth, we live in a post-ultra-premium-defender world, with the most expensive defenders this year coming in at 6.0m.

This is the last part of the Defenders Series. In case you missed it, Read the Other 3 parts of the Defenders series:

Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season
Best £4.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season
Best £5.0-5.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season

There are in fact 9 defenders in this price bracket, with only four teams represented in this FPL cross-section, so for this edition, we will be taking a look at ALL of the 6.0m defensive options and analysing them on a team-by-team basis. At the end of the post itself there will be a summary of the best options overall.

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Top Premium(£6.0 Million) FPL Defenders

Arsenal

Gabriel and Saliba both come in at 6.0m this year, and will likely be two of the more popular options in the premium defender bracket. Gabriel was the more popular pick when fit last season, as he posed much more of a goal threat (0.16xG.90) than Saliba. However, the Frenchman came into his own when Gabriel unfortunately picked up an injury in early December, scoring in back-to-back games in the league. Those were Saliba’s only goals however, and Gabriel remained far more of a threat from set pieces for the remainder of the season. While set-piece strategy is constantly evolving, it can only be assumed that Gabriel will remain one of the principal targets from corners and free kicks for the coming season, and thus, in terms of attacking output, remains a more attractive option.

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The addition of defensive contribution points has made the 4.5m, 5.0m and 5.5m price points far more competitive than they have been in the past, with more conservative defenders far more appealing FPL options this time around. The same cannot be said for the premium bracket – let me briefly explain why. Defensive contribution points are awarded to players who perform a high number of clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles in a given game. Defensive actions are often highest amongst players who play for teams who have low possession – ie. they have the ball less and have to defend more.

All of the players in the 6m bracket play for teams who like to dominate the ball and who try to win the ball back high up the pitch when not in possession. This means that their defenders often rank fairly low on the CBIT/90 metric. For example, Saliba and Gabriel averaged around 6 CBIT/90 last season, far below the 10 necessary to score DC points. In fact, only one player in this price bracket averaged over 7 CBIT/90 last season, so if you read this post and wonder why defensive contribution points and CBIT numbers feature so little compared to the rest of the series, that’s why…

Moving on to Arsenal’s clean sheet potential… The Gunners have a tough run of fixtures to start the season, meaning many will be staying away from their attackers until after GW6, but their defense is a different story. Manchester United and Leeds United are their first two fixtures, both teams who could struggle to score against the unaltered Arsenal backline which conceded just 34 goals and kept 13 CS last season. While Liverpool, Forest, City and Newcastle is a more challenging prospect between GW3-6, Arteta often asks his teams to sit deeper and play more conservatively against tougher opposition, and is often accused of ‘playing for the draw’ against big teams, so a couple of CS in that run is definitely not out of the question.

Their fixtures are not great, and in a world where FPL players will likely have a maximum of one, or maybe two, premium defenders in their GW teams, I’m skeptical as to whether Arsenal defenders are the best options. I rank Gabriel higher than Saliba due to his higher xGI, but my suggestion would be to target Arsenal assets post GW6.

Pre-Season update: Gabriel hasn’t played much in pre-season due to an injury but has recovered and has finally made his comeback in the 2-3 loss to Villarreal(On August 6th) coming in as a substitute in the 62nd minute.

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Chelsea- Cucurella

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Chelsea have just one defender priced at 6.0m, but he is nonetheless worth discussing, and that man is Marc Cucurella. Cucurella produced 5 goals and 2 assists last season, in a Chelsea campaign littered with injury and inconsistency. The Spaniard will certainly be confident of bettering that total this time around, and may well be incentivised further, as the media have reported in recent days that he is in talks over a new contract with the club… I must say that his underlying numbers are not great, and there are far better ‘attacking’ defensive options at lower price points – if you’re looking for a defender to get you attacking returns on a regular basis, I would look elsewhere.

The Spanish left back managed 14 bonus points last year, a total only bettered by one other defender in this list (keep reading to find out who!). While all of this sounds very attractive, there is another reason to pick Cucurella – he plays for World Champions Chelsea. Many in the footballing world expect the Blues to be a much improved team this season, having ended last campaign fairly well, winning 5 of their last 6 PL games and clinching the Club World Cup in America in July. It must not be forgotten that Chelsea were in and around a title challenge until the new year – don’t let them go under your radar!

Moresca’s style of play is complex, and requires time for players to fully get to grips with its patterns and principles. With another pre-season under their belts, the players will surely feel more confident in themselves, their manager and the style of play. While they could definitely still improve in the goalkeeping departement, I would expect Chelsea’s defensive record to improve this year, and for the Blues to improve on their record of 9 CS from last season. Cucurella is a nailed Chelsea defender, good for bonus points, and produces the odd attacking return – he is definitely one to consider, but I think he is neither the best Chelsea defensive asset, nor the best premium defender for GW1.

Further Read: FPL Defensive Contribution Points- Top Picks, Stats & Impact

Liverpool

Liverpool have a total of 4 defenders priced at 6.0m, with new signings Kerkez and Frimpong both coming in at 6.0m, along with Virgil and Robertson. Let’s try to figure out who might be the best option…

Robertson is immediately ruled out. His expected minutes have been dramatically reduced by the signing of Kerkez and he had such a poor season last year. His underlying numbers from last season are decent, 0.23xGI/90 last season, but we should not expect him to start the season as the starting LB for the Reds. Furthermore, he’s been playing as a CB in pre-season (due to Liverpool’s lack of depth in that position), so he may actually become third choice LB, with Tsimikas possibly overtaking him should LFC not sign another defender to cover for VVD and Konate.

That being said I think picking Kerkez is also a risk. His tally of 2 goals and 5 assists makes for great reading, and it’s clear why Slot wanted to sign him, but will he play 90 minutes week-in week-out? I’m not so sure. Also, while many predict that both Frimpong and Kerkez will play as flying full backs, we have seen so little of both of them in LFC shirts so far that it is impossible to say with any certainty. I think in the long term Kerkez could be an excellent asset at 6.0m, but for GW1 – I think it’s an unnecessary risk.

The reason that Slot has signed both Kerkez and Frimpong was to make Liverpool more flexible, as well as to replace the old fullback pairing of Robbo and Trent. Bradley signed a new contract around the same time as Frimpong was announced, meaning that they will likely both be part of Slot’s plans for the upcoming season. Liverpool, like all clubs in Europe, will have a lot of games to play, particularly around Christmas and the new year, and it is not out of the question that Slot will rotate his full backs depending on fitness, form and the opponent. Bradley and Robertson a more conventional, conservative options, while Frimpong and Kerkez are basically wingers disguised as defenders.

Due to the uncertainty surrounding the full back positions, and the likelihood of rotation, I would steer clear of all three for the time being, until we get some clarity and one emerges as a great option. 6.0m is a lot to spend on a defender who may not start.

That leaves Virgil. In my humble opinion he is the only LFC defender I would consider for GW1, here’s why. VVD is the only one of these four players guaranteed to start (unless injured) every GW. That is the minimum requirement for a 4.5m defender never mind a 6.0m one! Rotation concerns coupled with Liverpool’s fixture run which includes Newcastle (A) and Arsenal (H) in their first 3 fixtures means that the risk versus reward is very one sided (on the risk side). Virgil is the only player on this list over 7 CBIT/90, averaging 8.17 per 90 according to Fantasy Football Hub. He’s also a decent threat from set pieces, but otherwise offers little attacking threat. His main attraction is the CS potential, as he is the only nailed starter in this list for the best defense in the league last season (14 clean sheets).

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Liverpool’s backline has of course changed drastically since last season, but I would still expect them to be a solid defensive unit having retained the same spine as last season. Due to the fixtures and the upheaval in the defense over the summer, I would probably stay away from Liverpool defenders until at least GW4+, but if you’re going to go for one I would only recommend VVD.

Further Read: Initial FPL GW1 Drafts for the 25/26 FPL Season with Pros & Cons

Manchester City

The final team on this list is the Sky Blue’s, with two of their defenders coming in at 6.0m in FPL 25/26. The two assets that come in at this premium price point are Gvardiol and Ait-Nouri (RAN). The signing of RAN from Wolves indicates that Gvardiol may continue to play at CB, as he began to do towards the end of last season, making him a far less attractive option from an FPL perspective. Like all of the other assets in this list, Gvardiol ranks fairly low for CBIT/90, meaning that his only appeal would come from his CS potential. While this certainly exists, there are Man City assets priced at 5.5m who are just as likely to start (Ruben Dias) at CB and thus offer the same CS potential as Gvardiol but at a lower price point.

RAN will likely be the starting LB for City going into this season, but again, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, it is likely that Gvardiol and RAN will rotate in that position depending on opponent, match state, form and fitness. RAN produced 4 goals and 7 assists last season for Wolves, making him perhaps the most attacking defender in all of FPL. His underlying numbers back up that he is a very attacking player (0.25xGI/90), but it must be stated that he was, for the majority of last season, playing as a wing back, not a full back.

New club, new system, new formation, but I can still see RAN racking up attacking returns fairly easily – if he gets the minutes. Gvardiol managed to get 5 goals last season, with all but one of those coming in games where he was playing as a left back rather than as a CB, thus it is not crazy to suggest that RAN could continue on his trajectory from last season in terms of attacking contributions.

My issue with both of these players is their minutes. Pep roulette is bad enough for attackers, but with the number of defenders that City have going into this new season, picking the right one could be an absolute headache for FPL managers. Furthermore, City have 1 scheduled pre-season game. You read that right. 1 pre-season fixture is scheduled for City. That means, between 1st July (CWC RO16) and 16th August (the start of the season), they will have played just once. We therefore have no idea of the fitness levels, system or likely starting XI for their first game against Wolves, which is a cause for concern.

As with Kerkez, I like RAN in the long term, but with his minutes not guaranteed, I’m unsure that he’s a great pick for GW1. City’s fixtures decent in their first 5 games, but having played just 1 pre-season game I am worried about how they may fare (and about how they will play).

Further Read: Best Budget FPL Midfielders for the 2025/26 FPL Season

Premium FPL Defenders Stats for CBIT/90 from last season:

Van Dijk- 8.16
Gvardiol- 6.40
Saliba- 6.39
Gabriel- 6.13
Alexander Arnold- 6.06
Cucurella- 5.75
Kerkez- 5.63
Ait Nouri- 5.38
Robertson- 3.86

Verdict: Best £6.0 Million FPL Defenders

As you can probably tell, I have issues with almost all of the defenders on this list. I will include a ranking below of who I believe to be the best assets for FPL GW1, but my honest opinion is that there is better value to be found in the lower price brackets.

Due to the FPL rule changes, and the addition of 2 sets of chips, I think an early wildcard is a feasible strategy, as it would allow managers the time and space to strategise the use of the rest of their chips having reassessed their squad after a few GWs. This strategy would also allow FPL managers to see how the likes of Frimpong, Kerkez, RAN et al fare in the first few GWs of the season, and to subsequently add one or two 6.0m slots into their team post WC. This is my preferred strategy, as I believe the rotation concerns around the LFC and MCI assets and the fixture issues with the ARS duo make almost all of the 6.0m defenders unappealing options for FPL GW1. Anywho here’s my list…

Best £6.0 Million FPL Defenders For GW1 Ranked:

Cucurella – Decent fixtures, new contract, little competition, nailed. Expect Chelsea to be better this season. Low CBIT and xGI numbers.
Virgil Van Dijk – Nailed. Threat from set pieces. Best defense last season. Best CBIT numbers amongst premiums. Not great xGI. Decent fixtures, but not great.
Kerkez – Not Nailed, but great attacking potential. High xGI, great output last season. Likely to become undisputed starting LB for Liverpool in medium term. Decent fixtures, but not great.
Gabriel – Nailed. Threat from set pieces. 2nd best defense ITL last season. Poor fixtures to start the season. Low CBIT
Ait Nouri – Great attacking potential and output last season. Good xGI. New system, new team, lack of pre-season all causes for concern. Not guaranteed minutes. Good fixtures
Saliba – Nailed. Less of a threat than Gabriel from set pieces. 2nd best defense ITL last season. Poor fixtures to start the season. Low CBIT
Gvardiol – Lack of pre-season. Likely to start at CB (cheaper cb options available). Low xGI from CB, low CBIT.
Frimpong – Not nailed (unless Bradley is injured). Great attacking output in recent seasons. New league. Likely low CBIT. Unlikely to become undisputed RB for LFC in medium term. Decent fixtures.
Robertson – Not nailed. Likely to cover LB and CB. Low CBIT. Poor season last year. Replacement signed this summer window.

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Dylan

Currently studying Modern Foreign Languages at University. Liverpool/Sheffield Wednesday Fan. Interested in translation, journalism, football and data analysis.

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Best Premium FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season

Best Premium FPL Defenders for the 2025/26 FPL Season