FPL Budget Picks: The Best DEF Under £5.0 — 8 Aug
The call — BUDGET DEFENDERS UNDER £5.0m: WHO ACTUALLY EARNS THEIR MINUTES Sixty-five defenders come in at £5.0m or under this week, and the one our model likes most is a Spurs centre-back staring down a very tough run of fixtures. That tells you everything about this price bracket: fixtures matter less than a bloke who starts every week and defends like it's…
Van Hecke (TOT, £5.0m) tops the list. Nailed starter, proven, and projected for around 17-18 points over the next six despite that ugly run, starting at BRE (A). About 1 in 10 own him. The fixtures aren't the sell — the minutes are.
Mitchell (CRY, £4.5m) is the value play. Fifty grand cheaper, starts every week, good for roughly 17 points over six. EVE (A) first up. Under 1 in 10 have him. That's the £4.5m slot sorted, frankly.
The rest, one line each. Maguire (£5.0m) starts for United on an average run, HUL (A) next — fine, unspectacular. Colwill (£5.0m) projects highest of the lot at Chelsea, but he's not yet a proven week-in, week-out starter, and I don't pay for hope — hardly anyone owns him for a reason. Ballard (£5.0m) starts for Sunderland but the fixtures are brutal. Konsa (£4.5m) is the most-owned name here bar Shaw, yet Villa's run is horrible and the model ranks him mid-pack — the crowd's behind the curve. N.Williams (£5.0m) starts for Forest, tough run, LEE (H) next. Thiaw (£5.0m) is the quiet one — nearly 20 projected points and barely anyone owns him, but Liverpool at home first and a grim run after; a watch, not a buy. Dalot (£5.0m) starts on United's decent run and only 3 in 10... sorry, 3 in *100* own him relative to Shaw's crowd — decent shout if you want the fixtures. Shaw (£4.5m) is owned by over 2 in 10 and projects worst of the United trio. The template's asleep. Van de Ven (£5.0m) starts but Van Hecke outscores him in the same defence. Aina (£4.5m) isn't a certain starter — next.
The call: Van Hecke is the £5.0m pick — nailed, proven, and the best points-per-week in the bracket. Mitchell at £4.5m is the alternative if the budget's tight, and honestly he's barely half a point behind. Buy either, ignore Shaw's ownership, and let the romantics chase Colwill.