Haaland, Bruno, Gabriel, and Palmer are some of the most popular FPL options ahead of the 26/27 FPL season. But to have these premium players in your team, you need to have the £4.0 defender or the 4.5 midfielders who will help you facilitate these moves. It is important to find these 4.0 defenders(who are likely to start) nice and early & have them on your bench so that they can chip in when required. In this article, we take a detailed look at the Best £4.0 million FPL Defenders for the upcoming 2026/27 season who are likely to start most games.
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Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders
Milan van Ewijk
Coventry’s Milan van Ewijk is the first name in our list of Best 4.0 Million FPL Defenders. The attacking full-back picked up 8 assists last season in the Championship and featured in all 44 games and started in 43 of those games. Coventry won the Championship last season by a comfortable margin on the back of a strong defence, having conceded the fewest goals (45) and keeping the 2nd most clean sheets (17).
Van Ewijk Numbers in the Championship last season:
- Assists: 8
- xA: 5.92
- Big chances created: 10
- Chances created: 44
- Clean Sheets: 17
- DEFCONs per 90: 6.42
Van Ewijk’s assist potential is also clearly evident from his numbers last season, having created 44 chances and 10 big chances, resulting in an xA of 5.92. Coventry also have decent fixtures in the first few gameweeks of the season, barring Arsenal & Man City in GW1 and GW3 respectively. He could be a solid option if you’re one of those managers keen on using bench boost early (Potentially in GW2) as Coventry face Hull City in GW2.
Bobby Thomas
Van Ewijk’s teammate, Bobby Thomas, is our 2nd 4.0 defender in focus. The English CB had seven attacking contributions (3 goals + 4 assists) in 33 games, which is impressive for a center-back. Thomas also averaged 1.1 shots per 90, which was the 3rd best & his xA of 3.4 was 4th best amongst center-backs in the Championship last season.
Thomas also has a better Defcon potential than Van Ewijk, having averaged 8.56 DC/90, which is roughly two more than Van Ewijk.
Bobby Thomas Numbers in the Championship last season:
- Goals: 3
- Assists: 4
- xG: 2.89
- Shots:37
- Shots on target: 11
- Headed Shots: 29
- xA: 3.38
- Big chances created: 5
- Chances created: 28
- Clean Sheets: 17
- DEFCONs per 90: 8.56
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Charlie Hughes
Charlie Hughes arguably has the best DEFCON potential amongst all 4.0 million defenders. He averaged 11.8 DEFCON’s per 90 last season in the Championship, which was the 10th highest amongst all players in the Championship & highest amongst the three promoted teams. Hull City, however, aren’t great defensively and conceded an xG of 80.1, which was the 2nd worst in the Championship last season, so you shouldn’t be hoping for a lot of clean sheets from Hughes/Hull City in the PL.
Charlie Hughes’ numbers in the Championship last season:
- Goals: 1
- Assists: 1
- xG: 1.07
- Shots: 16
- Shots on target: 5
- Headed Shots: 29
- xA: 0.96
- Big chances created: 1
- Chances created: 10
- Clean Sheets: 11
- DEFCONs per 90: 11.77
Leif Davis
Leif Davis was a popular FPL option the last time Ipswich were in the PL. He’s back once again, having registered really good attacking numbers in the Championship and playing a key role in Ipswich’s return to the Premier League.
Davis had an xA of 8.90, which was the 4th highest in the Championship amongst all players and highest amongst defenders. Remarkably, he got only four assists, underperforming his xA by 4.9. He also created 14 big chances (2nd highest) and 69 chances (3rd highest) amongst defenders. Ipswich are also much stronger defensively than Hull City, having conceded only 47 goals and 46.6 xG, both being the 2nd lowest in the Championship.
Leif Davis numbers in the Championship last season:
- Goals: 2
- Assists: 4
- xG: 1.14
- Shots: 24
- Shots on target: 6
- xA: 8.90
- Big chances created: 14
- Chances created: 69
- Clean Sheets: 17
- DEFCONs per 90: 4.29
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During the 24/25 PL season, Leif Davis created 61 chances, 12 big chances in just 33 games, which is close to his Championship numbers from last season. If you’re looking for an attacking 4.0 million defender, then Leif Davis should be one of your top options!
Dara O’Shea
Just like Van Ewijk/Thomas, we have a combination at Ipswich too. If you’re looking for a trusted DEFCON defender from Ipswich over an attacking full-back, then Dara O’Shea could be your option. He also has decent header potential, having had 28 headed shots on goal with an xG of 3.28 in the Championship last season. O’Shea is the club captain but might face competition from Diop or new manager, Gary O’Neil, could go with a back three and start Diop, O’Shea and Greaves. Watch out for pre-season friendlies.
Dara O’Shea numbers in the Championship last season:
- Goals: 1
- Assists: 1
- xG: 3.28
- Shots: 42
- Shots on target: 9
- Headed Shots: 28
- xA: 1.96
- Big chances created: 3
- Chances created: 15
- Clean Sheets: 17
- DEFCONs per 90: 8.74
Ryan Giles
Hull Left back Ryan Giles is an exciting alternative to Charlie Hughes. Giles registered 8 assists in the Championship last season from an xA of 6.17. He also created 39 chances and 11 big chances. Naturally, Giles’ DEFCON potential is low as he’s a left back, so you’ll have to rely on him for attacking returns. Do note that Hull have signed Matt Targett to provide competition for the LB spot. Targett himself had a great season at Middlesbrough, scoring four goals and picking up 4 assists from an xGI of 9.26.
Ryan Giles Numbers in the Championship last season:
- Goals: 0
- Assists: 8
- Shots: 11
- Shots on target: 2
- xA: 6.17
- Big chances created: 5
- Chances created: 39
- Clean Sheets: 11
- DEFCONs per 90: 4.85
Issa Diop
Issa Diop had a very good World Cup representing Morocco, starting 5 out of the 6 games for the Atlas Lions during the World Cup and has since finalized a move from Fulham to Ipswich. He only managed 8 PL games last season for Fulham and will be expecting regular starts at Ipswich.
Diop has also joined the team post his World Cup break so watch out for Ipswich’s upcoming friendlies to see if he’s the first choice CB.
John Egan
John Egan used to be 4.0 Million FPL legend John Lundstram’s CB partner during the famous 19/20 season for Sheffield when they finished 9th in the table. Egan scored 133 FPL points that season but was majorly overlooked as he was a 4.5 million defender then. He’s now the first-choice CB for Hull City and averaged 10 DC/90 last season. He also has decent set-piece goal threat along with DEFCON potential.
Egan Numbers in the Championship last season:
- Goals: 3
- Assists: 0
- xG: 1.76
- Shots: 19
- Shots on target: 8
- Headed Shots: 5
- xA: 1.34
- Chances created: 9
- Clean Sheets: 11
- DEFCONs per 90: 10.08
Other £4.0 Million FPL Defenders to Monitor:
- Coventry’s new CB Aurele Amenda, who has signed from Eintracht Frankfurt, he is expected to be a starter and averaged 9 DEFCONs last season for Frankfurt.
- Big Jacob Greaves, who should continue at CB for Ipswich, averaged 9.62 DEFCON’s per 90 in the Championship last season.
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If you’re new to FPL, here is a link to all our FPL Beginners Guide including FPL Beginner’s Guide- How to play?, Bench boost, Team value, Triple captain, Effective ownership, Price Changes, Free Hit, Bonus Points, and more.
Link to all our 2026/27 Pre-Season articles including all position-wise analysis, team previews, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, and more. Completely free to access as well!
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