Best Defenders to Rotate in FPL
We continue our coverage by covering the best defenders to rotate in FPL. Whether that be for the first six Gameweeks, the first 11 Gameweeks or right up until the halfway point in Gameweek 19, we take a look at the fixtures to help put our list together.
Knowing who the best defenders to rotate in FPL can be a crucial part of your strategy for the season ahead. Rotating defenders doesn’t always work but based on the data and fixtures it could well work for the season ahead.
Gameweek 1-6
Gameweek 6 is a period that some within the community will be looking at for the use of their wildcard. For that reason it could be beneficial to pick out this window.
Due to the short timeframe there are several great pairings an FPL manager could use at the start of the season.
One pairing that caught the eye between Gameweek 1-6 was Chelsea and Aston Villa. Both sides finished in the top six last season which is one example of their quality.
We can see that pairing up, for example, Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa (£4.5m) and Chelsea’s Levi Colwill (£4.5m) or Benoit Badiashile (£4.5m) could be rewarding.
Pairing both up would mean playing West Ham, Wolves, Leicester, Everton, Wolves or West Ham and Ipswich in that order.
Some should also consider an early pairing between Newcastle and Fulham. This can be done with (for example) Newcastle’ Dan Burn (£4.5m) and Fulham’ Antonee Robinson (£4.5m).
Rotating Burn and Robinson would mean playing all three promoted sides in the first three fixtures. It would then make for clashes against Wolves or West Ham, a match against each other and then Nottingham Forest in Gameweek 6.
Crystal Palace are also another team we could add into the mix.
As you can see we have placed Crystal Palace in-between Aston Villa and Chelsea. This is so you can see that they rotate well with both of those sides.
Rotating (for example) Joachim Anderson (£4.5m) with Ezri Konsa could give you fixtures including West Ham or Brentford, West Ham, Leicester, Leicester again, Wolves and then Ipswich.
Alternatively you could pair Anderson with a Chelsea centre-back and face Brentford, West Ham or Wolves, Crystal Palace, Leicester, West Ham, then Everton.
Gameweek 1-11
Gameweek 12 appears to be another round many are debating the use of the Wildcard in. This is probably due to the significant fixture swings. Because of this those same managers could be looking for a good defensive pairing up until then.
One Gameweek 1-6 pairing that could stand the test of time is Newcastle and Fulham.
If we stuck with the Burn and Robinson partnership it would mean not playing a single tough (red) fixture. In fact, this pairing would mean not even facing a medium (grey) fixture, so you would always have a good chance of a clean sheet.
This pairing would also allow you the flexibility to Wildcard around Gameweek 6 or 12.
Another defensive double up we could consider between Gameweek 1-11 is Aston Villa and Crystal Palace.
In this case Konsa and Anderson would avoid playing in a tough fixture throughout. The only match that may be cause for concern in terms of clean sheet potential is when Aston Villa clash with Manchester United.
You could even pair Crystal Palace and Chelsea up in defence. Rotating Anderson and a Chelsea centre-back would avoid a clash against tough opposition.
The only challenge that a Anderson and Chelsea centre-back would have to overcome is in Gameweek 9 when owners will have to make a decision between starting Anderson against Tottenham or a Chelsea centre-back against Newcastle.
Gameweek 1-19
Some FPL managers may want to stay completely flexible with their Wildcard right up until the midway point in the season.
If you are one of the managers mentioned above then you will need a defensive pairing with good potential all of the way up to Gameweek 19.
One combination seems to continuously standout above the rest here. The Newcastle and Fulham fixtures seem to perfectly intertwine offering up plenty of potential in the Burn and Robinson duo.
Sticking with Burn and Robinson would help you avoid a single tough fixture right the way through.
Gameweek 18 may offer up the first and only main debate between the two, having to pick between Burn v Newcastle or Robinson v Chelsea.
Another good pairing could be between Everton and Newcastle.
A combination of Vitaliy Mykolenko and Burn could be beneficial. In this scenario you could avoid a tough fixture right the way through to Gameweek 19.
The toughest decision you would have is likely to come in Gameweek 19 when you may have to play Mykolenko v Manchester City or Burn v Aston Villa.
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