Best budget defenders in FPL

The new Premier League season is edging closer and whilst they have offered some fantastic player prices this season managers are still looking for the best budget defenders in FPL. Because of this, with the help of Fantasy Football Scout we take a look at some of them here.

Looking at the best budget defenders in FPL can be extremely useful for managers. Budget defenders help enable the more pricier options within the game. This can help towards claiming a successful rank or mini-league position.

The fixtures

Below we can see which teams have the best fixtures to start the season (at the top) and which teams have the worst fixtures (at the bottom).

Wesley Fofana

Chelsea rank third on the fixture ticker for the first six matches. The Blues face Liverpool, West Ham, Luton, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth and Aston Villa. This could suggest that investing in the Chelsea defence a good move.

The Blues had a torrid 22/23 league campaign which was nowhere near the usual standard they set themselves. With the addition of new manager Mauricio Pochettino we could see huge improvements next season.

Whilst many look to the likes of full-backs Reece James (£5.5m) and Ben Chilwell (£5.5m) or even goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga (£5m) there is a cheaper route into the defence. Wesley Fofana comes in at just £4.5m and is also favourite to cement a first team position in centre-back.

It may also be worth monitoring Reece James during pre-season. The Englishman was plagued with injuries last season and if that happens again then back up right-back Malo Gusto (£4m) could become a very clever pick.

Amari’i Bell

Luton fought their way through the Championship play-offs last season to claim promotion to the Premier League. During their impressive 22/23 campaign ‘The Hatters’ managed to scoop a huge 20 clean sheets. This boosts the appeal of their defensive options.

Although the fixture ticker shows Luton have a game against Burnley in Gameweek 2, they do not. Their Gameweek 2 match was postponed which means they have a double Gameweek ahead. This increases the already high appeal of centre-back Amari’i Bell who comes in at £4m – making him one of the cheapest playing defenders in the game.

Rico Henry

Brentford impressed last season as they finished amongst the top 10 teams in the league and fell just short of European football. In their early schedule they sit fifth on the fixture ticker with matches against Tottenham, Fulham, Crystal Palace, Bournemouth, Newcastle and Everton.

‘The Bees’ bagged 12 clean sheets last campaign so with that in mind and their great early fixtures, the Brentford defence could be a wise place to invest in. Many expected full-back Rico Henry (£4.5m) to cost £5m this season after an impressive 22/23 campaign which saw him just outside the top 10 defenders for non-penalty expected goal involvement (4.46)

Joel Veltman

Brighton had a fantastic league campaign last season securing European football. A large contributing factor to that was their defensive qualities as they maintained some of the best underlying data in the division. In fact, they ranked amongst the best five teams for shots in the box conceded, attempts on goal conceded and shots on target conceded.

The 22/23 Brighton defensive data is enough to be interested but they also have great starting fixtures. They face Luton, Wolves, West Ham, Newcastle, Manchester United and Bournemouth. One of the cheapest ways into the backline is Joel Veltman (£4.5m). He made 25 starts last season and unless replaced, could have great potential in terms of minutes for 23/24.

George Baldock

Sheffield United claimed a second place finish in the Championship last season which meant automatic promotion to the Premier League. Along the way, one of their strengths was in defence as they collected an impressive 19 clean sheets.

‘The Blades’ play with a back-three system which allows their wing-backs to advance forward giving them more potential for attacking returns. One of the players who could benefit from that is George Baldock. Not only does he come in at £4m in the game but he is also the only £4m playing defender that does not blank in Gameweek 2.

Sven Botman

Newcastle rank near the bottom of the fixture ticker to start the season. They face Aston Villa, Manchester City, Liverpool, Brighton, Brentford and Sheffield United their starting six matches. That may be the case but they maintained some amazing defensive data last campaign.

To highlight the 22/23 Newcastle defensive stats – they ranked joint best for goals conceded (33), joint second best for clean sheets (14) and second best for big chances conceded (51). With that in mind, his importance to his side and his surprising £4.5m price-tag, Sven Botman could be a fantastic budget option.