No defender in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) 2025/26 has been priced above £6.0m, making this the top price point for the position.
After breaking down the best £4.5m budget defenders and the top mid-priced options, it’s now time to assess the most expensive defenders in the game — and whether they’re worth the premium.
A key change for FPL 2025/26 is the introduction of the new Defensive Contributions rule.
Defenders now earn 2 points for every 10 combined tackles, blocks, interceptions, or clearances. This rule significantly boosts the appeal of centre-backs and full-backs who rack up defensive actions — adding more upside than ever before
There are only nine defensive options available to FPL managers in the £6.0m price bracket: Gabriel, Saliba, Cucurella, Kerkez, Robertson, Virgil, Frimpong, Aït-Nouri and Gvardiol.
As the above image from our Stats Sandbox shows, Virgil would have been the biggest beneficiary among the Premium Defenders under the new DEFCON scoring system, with the Dutch international averaging 10.68 DEFCON per game last season.
Saliba (9.71) outshines his defensive partner Gabriel (7.50), giving FPL managers a decision to make, especially considering Gabriel's considerable goal threat compared to the Frenchman.
Gvardiol's data is slightly skewed, given that he featured both at left-back and centre-back last season. Nevertheless, the Croatian international performed well for DEFCON (9.71), although his role could shift this season following the arrival of Aït-Nouri.
Kerkez (9.24) also posted strong numbers, but these should be taken with a pinch of salt, as Bournemouth generally had far less possession than Liverpool. The same caveat applies to Aït-Nouri (8.03).
Cucurella ranks fifth (8.31); the Spanish international contributed five goals and two assists last season and is one of the few attacking full-backs to benefit significantly from DEFCON.
Robertson (5.88) recorded the lowest DEFCON figure among the group, which may reflect how Liverpool's full-backs could perform under the new system, though Arne Slot’s tactics could vary, especially with Díaz no longer at the club.
Given the £6.0m price tag, DEFCON potential alone is not enough. FPL managers will also be looking for attacking returns from defensive assets in this bracket, both in terms of goals and assists.
As the above image from our Stats Sandbox shows, both Man. City assets Gvardiol (34) and Aït-Nouri (31) are top for shots in the box.
It will be interesting to see if Guardiola intends on unleashing the Algerian international in an attacking left-back role which could make him absolute gold for FPL. Gvardiol's goal threat will no doubt dip if he is playing more games at centre-back, which seems more likely at this point of time.
Virgil (23) and Gabriel (20) had plenty of chances with the latter faring better for 'big chances' (five vs eight) and 'Expected Goals' (xG) (2.14 vs 3.63). Coupled with the DEFCON potential mentioned earlier, this makes Virgil a great choice.
Cucurella was joint-top with Gvardiol for goals but was only fourth for xG (2.75) and fifth for shots in the box (17). These numbers indicate that the Spanish international's numbers could possibly regress this campaign.
Robertson (12), Kerkez (11) and Saliba (six) offered minmal goal threat.
As the above image from our Stats Sandbox shows, fullbacks fare better for creativity with Aït-Nouri (46), Robertson (40) and Kerkez (35) topping the table. Frimpong also looks to be great for creative potential with five assists for Leverkusen last season.
Cucurella's creative numbers are mixed. Although he attempted 19 assists (fifth) and notched two assists, he created only two 'big chances', the same number as Gabriel and Virgil (two each), who are both centre-backs.
Fixture difficulty is less of a concern for the top four sides, but it still plays a part. As the image from our Fixture Difficulty Ratings shows, last season’s champions Liverpool rank third for ‘Defence Difficulty’ over the opening six Gameweeks, with favourable matchups against Bournemouth, Burnley and Everton standing out.
Man. City sit eighth, with the Manchester side facing only one opponent from last season’s top seven (Arsenal) in their opening run. Chelsea are 12th, and the Blues begin the season with four London derbies, any of which could prove potential banana skins.
Arsenal face a challenging start, with away trips to Man United, Liverpool and Newcastle, as well as home fixtures against Forest and Man City. With Gabriel’s fitness currently uncertain, the Gunners may be one to avoid for the opening few Gameweeks.
The Fix Algorithm is a powerful tool that takes into account fixture difficulty, team defensive strength, a defender's attacking ability and DEFCON potential.
As the above image shows, Virgil (23.4) tops the projections which is backed up by the analysis in this blog. Saliba (21.3) is significantly higher than Gabriel (16.4) but that is largely to do with the latter's current injury issues.
Cucurella (20.4) is close behind with some gametime and positional uncertainty for Gvardiol, Aït-Nouri, Kerkez, Frimpong and Robertson.
Based on this analysis, Virgil, Saliba and Cucurella look to be the safest picks in this bracket with Aït-Nouri carrying the most upside potential.
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