FPL best defender picks: Gameweek 5 complete budget, differential and premium tips
Picking the right back line can make all the difference when it comes to glory in FPL. We’ve got you covered with all of the info ahead of Gameweek 5.
Ideally, you are looking to include defenders that are expected to keep clean sheets, but the best defensive assets will also provide an attacking threat at the other end of the field.
Using our new FPL tool — Squawka Score — we can provide you with the best options to consider, comparing a player’s output per 90 minutes against the best attacking defenders in the game.
What is the Squawka Score? You can learn more about how we devised our fantasy football ranking system here.
Best FPL defenders
Top defender pick for Gameweek 5
Best cheap defenders for Gameweek 5
Best defenders with easy fixtures
Best FPL Defenders
Here are the top 10 Premier League defenders based on their FPL Squawka Score from the 2023 calendar year.
| Player | FPL Squawka Score | 23/24 Team | 23/24 FPL Price |
| Trent Alexander-Arnold | 78% | Liverpool | 7.9 |
| Pervis Estupinan | 78% | Brighton | 5.3 |
| Ben Chilwell | 78% | Chelsea | 5.8 |
| Pedro Porro | 76% | Spurs | 5.0 |
| Ivan Perisic | 70% | Spurs | 4.9 |
| Andy Robertson | 66% | Liverpool | 6.5 |
| Ben White | 61% | Arsenal | 5.5 |
| Lewis Hall | 58% | Newcastle | 4.5 |
| Nathan Ake | 58% | Man City | 5.1 |
| Kieran Trippier | 58% | Newcastle | 6.5 |
Top defender pick for Gameweek 5
Every week, we will bring you a Differential Duel to shine a light on a player who both ranks well according to our Squawka Score system and could be being overlooked by the majority of FPL players.
We will do the numbers and pit them against each other but, ultimately, the power is in your hands.
Ahead of Gameweek 5, we take a closer look at Chelsea’s Levi Colwill (4% ownership) and Newcastle’s Kieran Trippier (30.3%).
There’s a huge amount of ownership on Trippier but this hasn’t been repaid in points so far. The Newcastle right back has amassed just five points in the first four gameweeks, much owing to Newcastle’s poor form.
Colwill has over double the amount of points compared to his England colleague, collecting 11 points so far. Chelsea have a string of ‘easy’ fixtures coming up too, and no European football to cause a distraction, meaning this could be a nice way to bank £2m.
Here’s how their 2022/23 stats compare on our Comparison Matrix.
Best cheap defenders for Gameweek 5
With the £100million budget to adhere to, FPL managers need to be a bit tactical with their selections.
Using our Squawka Score super computer, we have found some budget defenders for you to consider ahead of Gameweek 5.
The best 4.5 picks for 23/24 FPL
- Lewis Hall, Newcastle (58%)
- Emerson Royal, Spurs (57%)
- Willy Boly, Nottingham Forest (54%)
The best 5.0 picks for 23/24 FPL
- Pedro Porro, Spurs (76%)
- Ivan Perisic, Spurs (70%)
- Oleksandr Zinchenko, Arsenal (57%)
Best defenders with easy fixtures
Before submitting your defence for Gameweek 5, it is worth doing one final check to accommodate one other factor.
Here, we have crunched the numbers on the FPL’s official Fixture Difficulty Rating (FDR) and used our Squawka Score ranking system to determine the best pick from each club with an ‘easy’ fixture this Gameweek.
| Team | Top pick | FPL Squawka Score | 23/24 FPL Price |
| Arsenal | Ben White | 54% | 5.5 |
| Aston Villa | Matty Cash | 77% | 4.7 |
| Burnley | Ameen Al-Dakhil* | — | 4.0 |
| Chelsea | Ben Chilwell | 78% | 5.8 |
| Fulham | Kenny Tete | 37% | 4.5 |
| Liverpool | Trent Alexander-Arnold | 78% | 7.9 |
| Luton | Mads Andersen* | — | 4.0 |
| Nottingham Forest | Willy Boly | 54% | 4.5 |
| Spurs | Pedro Porro | 76% | 5.0 |
