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Fantasy Premier League: The 10 most expensive FPL defenders in 2023-24
Cameron Smith
- Updated: 27 Jul 2023 05:57 CDT
- 5 min read
Trent Alexander-Arnold is once again the most expensive defender in the 2023-24 Fantasy Premier League season, with a price of £8 million.
The Liverpool star has now been the most expensive FPL defender for four straight years, with his attacking contributions unrivalled amongst players in his position group.
While his 156 points last year was a major decrease from the 208 he scored in 2021-22, Alexander-Arnold was still the second-highest scoring defender in FPL last season.
MORE: Fantasy Premier League: The 10 most expensive FPL players in 2023-24
Only Newcastle’s Kieran Trippier (198) bagged more points than Alexander-Arnold in 2022-23, despite his, and Liverpool’s, poor form. However, despite his high price, the England international is expected to deliver this year in a new inverted full-back role.
Alexander-Arnold scored once and provided seven assists in the final 10 Premier League games of last season in his new role; form that could continue this year.
Remarkably, the Liverpool star is £1.5m more expensive than any other defender in FPL 2023-24.
MORE: Fantasy Premier League: The 10 most expensive FPL goalkeepers in 2023-24
His club team-mate Andrew Robertson and the aforementioned Trippier are joint-second on the list of the most expensive FPL defenders at £6.5m.
They are followed by Joao Cancelo (Manchester City) and Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), who are both £6m.
Six players round out the most expensive defenders in FPL this year, all of whom are £5.5m. They are: Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Reece James (Chelsea), Ruben Dias (Man City), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Man City), and Benjamin White (Arsenal).
Interestingly, Trippier and Alexander-Arnold are the only two players from the 10 most expensive FPL defenders this year to have made the list of the 10 defenders with the most FPL points in 2022-23.
The likes of Tyrone Mings (seventh), Sven Botman (eighth) and Dan Burn (ninth) have all been priced at £4.5m, a whole £1m less than James, who was only 84th on the list of defenders with the most FPL points last year.
Who are the 10 most expensive defenders in FPL 2023-24?
| Player | Club | FPL Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Trent Alexander-Arnold | Liverpool | £8m |
| 2. Andrew Robertson | Liverpool | £6.5m |
| = Kieran Trippier | Newcastle | £6.5m |
| 4. Joao Cancelo | Man City | £6m |
| = Virgil van Dijk | Liverpool | £6m |
| 6. Ben Chilwell | Chelsea | £5.5m |
| = Reece James | Chelsea | £5.5m |
| = Ruben Dias | Man City | £5.5m |
| = Luke Shaw | Man Utd | £5.5m |
| = John Stones | Man City | £5.5m |
| = Benjamin White | Arsenal | £5.5m |
How do defenders score points in FPL?
Defenders have several ways of scoring points in FPL 2023-24. The most rewarding way is through goals as defenders will earn six points for every goal they score. That is why picking a goal-scoring defender is vital.
The more obvious, and frequent, way is to not concede. Defenders will earn four points for every clean sheet they earn.
If a defender assists a goal they will score three FPL points (the same as every other position), while they will score two points if they play more than 60 minutes (excluding added-time). They will score one point if they play up to 60 minutes.
The final way defenders can score points is through the FPL bonus points system. According to the official FPL website, this is how bonus points are allocated: “They [bonus points] are devised and allocated post-match according to a Bonus Points System (BPS).
“The BPS utilises a range of statistics supplied by Opta that capture actions on the pitch, to create a performance score for every player.
“The players with the top three BPS in a given match receive bonus points - three points to the highest-scoring player, two to the second best and one to the third.”
Defenders can also lose points if they concede two or more goals in a match, if they receive a yellow or red card, if they miss a penalty or if they score an own goal.
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Goal | 6 |
| Clean sheet | 4 |
| Assist | 3 |
| 60 minutes or more | 2 |
| Up to 60 minutes | 1 |
| Every two goals conceded | -1 |
| Yellow card | -1 |
| Own goal | -2 |
| Penalty miss | -2 |
| Red card | -3 |
Who had the biggest price rise in FPL 2023-24?
Erling Haaland and Marcus Rashford have seen their starting price increase by £2.5m from last year. Haaland started the 2022-23 season at £11.5m, while Rashford was priced at just £6.5m after an underwhelming previous campaign.
Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli’s starting prices have both risen by £2m, while Kieran Trippier, Kaoru Mitoma, Solly March and Evan Ferguson have been rewarded with a £1.5m increase to their starting price.
Who had the biggest price fall in FPL 2023-24?
Heung-Min Son may still be the joint-fifth most expensive player in FPL 2023-24, but his starting price has dropped £3m from 12 months ago. The Korea Republic international was priced at £12m last year - only £0.5m less than Mohamed Salah.
Raheem Sterling has also dropped £3m after a disappointing season at Chelsea, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin price has decreased by £2m after an injury-hit season.
Bruno Fernandes, Darwin Nunez and Kevin de Bruyne have fallen by £1.5m.
