28 Jul, 2025
The best £4m Defenders FPL 2025/26 revealed. Which budget enablers will you be targeting?
Unlike the cheapest options at the other positions, the £4m defender spot is actually loaded with great starting options. It’s worth noting that these are not even restricted to the promoted clubs. Although there are also great options available at the £4.5m range, the sheer plethora of options available at £4m, means it’s a great position to target if you are trying to make funds work elsewhere in the team.
Not least compared with last year where the budget enabler pickings were a lot slimmer, and teams found themselves loaded with the likes of Wout Faes. Many (including myself) also suffered at the hands of Barco-gate, as the hunt for a budget enabler in defence took some desperate twists and turns.
This year however, FPL have taken mercy on us, and despite generally raising prices across the more premium range, seem to have counter-balanced this change with plenty of cheap defenders. This could be particularly significant given the boost to defensive contributions, as even defenders for worse teams now have the chance to recoup points through these DCs.
As a result, if there is 1 spot where budget enablers offer huge value, it is undoubtedly the defender position. Although we were able to extract some value out of the £4.5m midfielders, the true treasure trove is the £4m range. We’d also like to shout out All About FPL for the data.
A great place to start is with the most nailed player on the list. Maxime Esteve. The Burnley centre back started every single game last season for the clarets and that looks unlikely to change entering the new season.
Burnley also led the league in clean sheets with a whopping 30! Only conceding 16, yes 16!!! Goals all season.
Naturally with Trafford’s departure and their promotion to the premier league, we can expect to see these numbers take a hit. However, even with a large hit to these numbers, Burnley’s set up and Esteve’s great defensive contribution projections, make him our best option at the £4m FPL defender point.
| Category | |
|---|---|
| Clearances per 90 | 5.0 |
| Blocks per 90 | 0.07 |
| Interceptions per 90 | 0.8 |
| Tackles per 90 | 1.1 |
| Total CBIT/90 | 6.97 |
Another nailed defender from a promoted outfit, Gudmundsson profiles as the more naturally attractive FPL option. Unlike Esteve, Gudmundsson carries some attacking threat, being a left back by trade. Although a 0.13 xGI per 90 for Lille last season is very solid for a defender, we should not read too deep into this ahead of the upcoming season. Lille in the French league and Leeds in the Premier League will be facing a far different set of circumstances, and although there is every chance he could log some assists, it is unlikely the challenges of the prem will permit similar underlying numbers.
One reason to be encouraged however was Leeds’ 25 clean sheets in the league last season, which in any other season would have been a standout amount, had Burnley not shattered records.
However, the prem will provide a different set of challenges, and his potential to recoup on defensive contributions is naturally lower than the likes of Esteve.
| Category | |
|---|---|
| Clearances per 90 | 1.3 |
| Blocks per 90 | 0.3 |
| Interceptions per 90 | 0.8 |
| Tackles per 90 | 1.8 |
| Total CBIT/90 | 4.2 |
Perhaps the most intriguing option on the list, is non-other than Luka Vuskovic of Spurs. Given it will be hard to dislodge Romero and Van De Ven as the starting pair, Vuskovic’s inclusion must be taken with a pinch of salt. His inclusion here is down in no small part to his fantastic pre-season and positive reports from Thomas Frank.
Tottenham are hardly loaded at centre-back and Dragusin has struggled not only for form but also with injury. So seeing the pitch or even the starting 11 is far from a pipe dream for the young Croat.
Where things get really exciting however are his attacking AND defensive contribution numbers.
The 6’4 19 year old managed a staggering 7 goals and 2 assists in just 28 games in the Belgian pro-league. Combined with stellar defensive contribution potential, Vuskovic could be an excellent option for what should hopefully be an improved Spurs defence under Thomas Frank.
| Category | |
|---|---|
| Clearances per 90 | 5.6 |
| Blocks per 90 | 0.2 |
| Interceptions per 90 | 0.8 |
| Tackles per 90 | 0.8 |
| Total CBIT/90 | 7.4 |
Our 4th place option in the £4m FPL defender category, is non other than Wolves’ Ki-Jana Hoever. The Wolves RB has found himself in the starting spot following the departures of Ait-Nouri and Nelson Semedo.
Naturally, there is a certain amount of risk in the Hoever selection, given there is a chance that Wolves sign a new full back before the windows end.
For now though, the reports out of Wolves’ pre-season camp have been very positive about Hoever’s starting potential. Pereira seems comfortable starting Hoever there throughout pre-season and Wolves have not shown a huge amount of urgency in terms of signing a starting full-back.
Boasting the highest Defensive contribution score per 90 on this list, Should Hoever retain his spot in the starting line-up, he presents an intriguing starting option from an incumbent premier league club, and could prove to be this season’s Agbadou.
| Category | |
|---|---|
| Clearences per 90 | 2.97 |
| Blocks per 90 | 1.40 |
| Interceptions per 90 | 0.89 |
| Tackles per 90 | 2.16 |
| Total CBIT per 90 | 7.42 |
| Name | Team |
|---|---|
| Reinildo Mandava | Sunderland |
| Ayden Heaven | Man United |
| Joe Rodon | Leeds |
| Alex Moreno | Aston Villa/Potential New |
| Quilindschy Hartman | Burnley |
| James Hill | Bournemouth |
| Josh Acheampong | Chelsea/Potential New |
| Julian Araujo | Bournemouth |
| Aaron Hickey | Brentford |
| Axel Tuanzebe | Burnley |
With years working in the FPL space and digital media. George now brings his knowledge and tips to the ingenuity audience through a fun and personable writing style.
