The Scout compares players' statistics, prices and fixtures in each position to help managers pick their opening squads for 2024/25 Fantasy Premier League, ahead of the Gameweek 1 deadline on Friday 16 August at 18:30 BST.
Premium defenders (£5.0m and over)
Manchester City's Josko Gvardiol (£6.0m) and Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.0m) have the attacking threat to smash Arsenal’s dominance of the defender standings in 2024/25 Fantasy.
Gvardiol’s displays towards the end of his debut 2023/24 campaign highlighted a change in Pep Guardiola’s tactics which allowed the Croat to push forward from left-back and become more influential in his side’s attack.
All of Gvardiol’s attacking returns for the season - four goals and two assists – arrived in Man City’s final 10 matches. He also kept five clean sheets to total 79 points, more than any other defender in Fantasy over that period.
Alexander-Arnold’s position under Liverpool’s new head coach Arne Slot may also determine how much funds managers invest in their defences.
At £7.0m, he’s the most expensive defender in 2024/25, but there's a reason for that - despite only featuring on 28 occasions last season, his 47 shots and 64 key passes ranked second and fourth respectively among defenders. If Alexander-Arnold is finally moved into central midfield, his potential for goals and assists will surely improve under Slot.
At present, though, Alexander-Arnold has yet to feature in pre-season due to his exertions with England in UEFA EURO 2024 and it seems very likely that question marks will remain over his role when the seasons kicks off.
Go for Gabriel over Saliba?
Arsenal’s resilience on the road, meanwhile, played a big part in helping Ben White (£6.5m), William Saliba and Gabriel (both £6.0m) top the defender standings in 2023/24.
The Gunners kept 11 clean sheets in those contests, more than any other side managed in home OR away matches.
As the only defender to start all 38 of their matches, Saliba’s secure role has ensured his ownership has soared to 40 per cent.
Yet there’s no doubt that Gabriel offers the greatest goal threat in the league’s meanest defence. Arsenal scored 22 goals from set-pieces last season, more than any other side. Gabriel – who started 34 matches - had 28 shots in such situations, compared with the seven of Saliba.
Newcastle United duo Kieran Trippier (£6.0m) and Fabian Schar (£5.5m), along with Tottenham Hotspur’s Pedro Porro (£5.5m), boast plenty of attacking threat.
On the downside, both Newcastle and Spurs – unlike Arsenal, Man City or Liverpool - do have a £4.5m starting defender as an alternative, which may well lessen the appeal of their most expensive defenders as managers look for value at the back.
Munoz a standout at £5.0m
Crystal Palace’s Daniel Munoz is one of the most exciting options in the £5.0m category.
The arrival of new head coach Oliver Glasner transformed the Colombian’s prospects last season. Raiding forward as a wing-back, Munoz was the seventh top-scoring defender from Gameweek 25 onwards, earning 57 points thanks to four assists and five clean sheets.
Granted, he’s slightly more expensive than Eagles centre-back Joachim Andersen (£4.5m), but there’s no doubt Munoz is worth the extra outlay in this case. After Glasner’s arrival, his 18 key passes were joint-fourth in his position, while his five big chances created placed second.
The downside with Munoz is, like Alexander-Arnold, he is late to return to pre-season training due to his international commitments over the summer.
Staying on the subject of Alexander-Arnold, his potential move to midfield could also unlock Conor Bradley (£5.0m) as a cut-price route into the Liverpool backline. The Irishman averaged 4.9 points per start (pps) in 2023/24, second only to the 5.1pps of Arsenal’s White.
An assessment of the all-round output of this season’s £5.0m-priced defenders includes both Munoz and Bradley in the top five.
Bradley claimed 0.84 returns (a clean sheet, goal or assist) per 90 minutes, combining a goal and three assists with three clean sheets in 10 appearances.
AFC Bournemouth’s Marcos Senesi is arguably the most secure pick to start the season and could be worth considering from the start. The centre-back's four goals, six assists and six clean sheets earn him second spot in the analysis.
Chelsea’s Malo Gusto mirrored the 0.56 returns per 90 of Munoz to show why he could also be an early option, with his right-back rival Reece James (£5.0m) suspended for the first three Gameweeks. The Frenchman supplied six assists in 27 outings last season.
Top £5.0m defenders, 2023/24
| Player | Goals | Assists | Clean sheets | Returns/90 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bradley | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0.84 |
| Senesi | 4 | 5 | 6 | 0.60 |
| Gusto | 0 | 6 | 5 | 0.56 |
| Munoz | 0 | 4 | 5 | 0.56 |
| Maguire | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0.54 |
What Bradley would also have in his favour here is that unlike his £5.0m-priced rivals, he would be the least expensive option in defence at his club.
That’s essentially the main narrative among the £5.0m defenders right now, and with cheaper options in those defences, it’s perhaps more advisable to pick a £6.0m asset such as Gvardiol and look to the budget bracket to help free up funds for Erling Haaland (£15.0m) up front.
