Team of the Season – Ryan Bertrand

Having started the 2013/14 campaign at Chelsea, Ryan Bertrand would only make one appearance for the Blues before moving on loan to Aston Villa in the January transfer window. The defender made 16 starts for Paul Lambert’s struggling side, registering only three shut-outs.

Before the beginning of last term, Bertrand would find himself on the move once more, with Southampton signing the left-back on a season-long loan. The Saints had kept 15 clean sheets in the previous campaign, so Bertrand was immediately thrust into the Fantasy limelight, priced at just 5.0 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) as the season got under way.

Despite losing Luke Shaw, Dejan Lovren and Calum Chambers, Southampton’s defensive unit once again delivered for Fantasy managers under new boss Ronald Koeman, with new recruits Fraser Forster and Toby Alderweireld, along with Bertrand, helping the Saints register 15 shut-outs once again – a total bettered by only Chelsea (17) and West Brom (16).

Southampton conceded 33 goals last term, helping them to the second best defensive record in the league, with champions Chelsea letting in just 32. Bertrand finished the season as the fifth highest scoring defender in FPL with 140 points, considerably more than he had totalled across his four previous years. In January, Southampton made Bertrand’s loan move permanent, with the left-back joining for £10m on a four-and-a-half year deal.

THE STATISTICS

It took little time for Koeman to stamp his mark on the Saints’ new-look backline, with his side keeping three clean sheets in their first five matches, before registering four consecutive shut-outs between Gameweek 8 and 11.

After such a fine start to the season, the Saints struggled to maintain their early resilience, though they did manage eight more shut-outs by the middle of April following a 2-0 win against Hull in Gameweek 32. That was to be their final clean sheet of the season though, with 11 goals conceded in their final six matches.

Bertrand benefitted from the revamped Bonus Points System, which rewarded attacking full-backs more this season, picking up 13 bonus points. That’s less than team-mates Jose Fonte (16) and Nathaniel Clyne (15), although Bertrand did miss two of Southampton’s clean sheets due to a three-match suspension following his red card against Swansea in Gameweek 23. The left-back scored twice and provided three assists last season, highlighting his attacking prowess.

THE PROSPECTS

Bertrand finished the season priced at 5.8 in FPL, having peaked at 5.9 during the final month of the campaign. Given that Fonte started last season valued at 5.5 after Southampton kept 15 clean sheets in 2013/14, we can expect Bertrand to be priced at a minimum of 5.5, with a hike to 6.0 more than possible.

The left-back averaged 4.1 points per appearance, the same as Clyne, with Fonte (3.8) managing slightly less, so it would seem more than likely that all three will find themselves in the same price bracket next time around. That is, of course, if Clyne remains at St Mary’s, with the England international heavily linked with a move away from the south-coast club with just a year left on his contract.

With Toby Alderweireld uncertain to return to Southampton following his season-long loan, Koeman will have to bring in some new faces in defence. Having recruited so well last summer, the chances of the Southampton rearguard being strong once again next season look high, though.

Of Saints’ 15 clean sheets, 11 came at home – a tally only matched by Chelsea – with eight of those against sides in the bottom half of the league. Delivering in plum home fixtures is a huge plus for any Fantasy prospect, although the Saints’ inability to pick up defensive returns on the road is a concern, given that a price hike is on the cards. Their total of four away shut-outs was on a par with Leicester and Hull, for example, and half the number delivered by West Brom.

As mentioned in the Nathaniel Clyne article, our assessment of Southampton’s defence may well depend on Koeman’s choice of keeper in the continued absence of Fraser Forster. Both Kelvin Davis and Paulo Gazzaniga will undoubtedly be cheaper than the likes of Bertrand and if either can nail down a role as the Saints’ temporary number one for the first few months of the season, they may well prove a far more popular pick as we look to save on budget at the back.