If you want FPL success, you’ll need to pick the right players to fill out your backline. We’ve got you covered with all of the info ahead of Gameweek 6.
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 6
Best cheap defenders for Gameweek 6
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 |
| Pedro Porro | 77% | Spurs | 5.0 |
| Ben Chilwell | 77% | Chelsea | 5.8 |
| Andy Robertson | 73% | Liverpool | 6.5 |
| Ivan Perisic | 70% | Spurs | 4.9 |
| Ben White | 62% | Arsenal | 5.5 |
| Kieran Trippier | 59% | Newcastle | 6.5 |
| Lewis Hall | 58% | Newcastle | 4.5 |
| Nathan Ake | 58% | Man City | 5.1 |
Top defender pick for Gameweek 6
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 6, we take a closer look at Aston Villa’s Lucas Digne (3.9% ownership) and Arsenal’s William Saliba (29.1%).
As you can see below, Saliba had the edge in most fields with his impressive performances helping the Gunners to a second-place finish.
But for £0.6 million less, it may be worth considering Digne, who has already registered three assists in five games this season. And he is likely to add to his points tally this weekend, with Villa facing a struggling Chelsea.
Here’s how their 2022/23 stats compare on our Comparison Matrix.
Best cheap defenders for Gameweek 6
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 6.
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 (77%)
- Ivan Perisic, Spurs (70%)
- Fabian Schar, Newcastle (56%)
Best defenders with easy fixtures
Before submitting your defence for Gameweek 6, 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 |
| Brentford | Ben Mee | 50% | 4.9 |
| Brighton | Pervis Estupinan | 78% | 5.3 |
| Crystal Palace | Joachim Andersen | 53% | 4.6 |
| Fulham | Kenny Tete | 37% | 4.5 |
| Liverpool | Trent Alexander-Arnold | 78% | 7.9 |
| Luton | Mads Andersen* | — | 4.0 |
| Man City | Nathan Ake | 58% | 5.1 |
| Man United | Diogo Dalot | 51% | 4.9 |
| Newcastle | Kieran Trippier | 76% | 6.5 |
| Wolves | Toti | 40% | 4.4 |