End of Season Awards – The Defenders

After taking a look over the main Goalkeepers from a Fantasy Football perspective in 2015/16 last week, our end of season awards continue this afternoon as we assess the main contenders in defence. Once again, we’ve released a poll in the right column of the homepage to collect your votes – please remember that each person can cast four votes this time around.

2014/15 Fantasy Football Scout Team of the Season Review

Goalkeeper – Fraser Forster
Defenders – John Terry, Branislav Ivanovic, Nathaniel Clyne, Ryan Bertrand
Midfielders – Eden Hazard, Alexis Sanchez, David Silva
Forwards – Charlie Austin, Harry Kane, Sergio Aguero

A cursory glance at last year’s Team of the Season serves to shine a spotlight on Chelsea’s ill-fated title defence. John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic once reigned supreme in the defender rankings, profiting from the Blues’ league-high tally of clean sheets (17) and their propensity for attacking returns. This season, however, the dethroned champions have amassed the joint-seventh-fewest shut-outs (nine), forcing us to pick our moments carefully when recruiting from the Londoners’ rearguard. Terry’s pockmarked injury record and prohibitive valuation has seen him slip into the shadows, while Ivanovic’s upturn in form under Gus Hiddink is the only thing that’s kept the floundering Serbian afloat.

Training our focus on Nathaniel Clyne, the former Southampton full-back provided us with a secure route into Liverpool’s backline. Ultimately, his paucity of attacking verve (one goal, zero assists) and the Reds’ lack of defensive resolve (10 clean sheets) forced him onto the periphery. As for his erstwhile teammate on the south coast, Ryan Bertrand, the ex-Chelsea man was stymied by injury for the opening six Gameweeks and has since fallen off our radar because of the set-piece prowess of Virgil van Dijk (three goals) and Jose Fonte (two goals and assists). Unless Bertrand is priced lower than Saints’ centre-back pairing next time around, he could again operate on the outskirts of our thinking.

Toby Alderweireld

Despite his sensational maiden campaign with the Lilywhites, Toby Alderweireld was a notable omission from the PFA Player of the Year shortlist. As one of the primary reasons that Spurs have transformed from an outfit that conceded the joint-fifth-most goals (53) to the fewest (28), the Belgian centre-back has arguably been the league’s standout defender, meshing the virtues of ball control and tactical discipline that were nurtured during his stints with Ajax and Atletico Madrid.

From a Fantasy perspective, Alderweireld ranks top among all defenders for total score (164), which triggered a huge price rise from 5.0 to 6.4 – at least double all but one other backline option in the game. With two matches left of the season, the four-goal Belgian also sits at the summit for efforts on target (12) and joint-top for attempts inside the box (28). Adding another string to his bow, Alderweireld’s knack for sweeping diagonals to Dele Alli has harvested three assists from a deep-lying position.

Considering that he’s one of a handful of players to have played every minute of the season prior to limping off at Chelsea last night, Alderweireld ticked every box in our pursuit of well-rounded assets. That consistency finds him charting second among defenders in Sky Sports Fantasy Football and Telegraph Fantasy Football. In the Fantasy League game, Spurs stingy defence ensures that he’s the highest-ranked centre-back by some margin.

Eric Dier

Mauricio Pochettino’s decision to employ Eric Dier as a holding midfielder during Spurs’ pre-season campaign was met with murmurings of discontent from a fan base yearning for a shiny new name following an exodus of central midfielders. That much-maligned idea proved to be a masterstroke, with the former Sporting Lisbon transitioning seamlessly into the role, supplying us with an out-of-position prospect.

Chalking up two goals in the opening seven Gameweeks, Dier initially looked the favoured path into Tottenham’s defence before Alderweireld stepped up a gear. Although he’s currently notched the joint-seventh-most attempts (29) among defenders, Dier would only add a further goal and assist in the subsequent 29 fixtures, though, and rose from 5.0 to 5.4 by comparison.

After benefitting from 12 clean sheets in his 35 outings, though, the inevitable shift in classification to midfielder by the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) will all but quash his allure next season.

Hector Bellerin

Staying within North London, Hector Bellerin has been a stalwart in an Arsenal defence that places joint-top for clean sheets (17). The Gunners endured an inauspicious start to the season – falling to a 2-0 home defeat against West Ham United – but soon regained composure, tallying five shut-outs across their subsequent eight match-ups. Owing to his raids down the right flank, Bellerin mustered two assists and six bonus points during that period, inviting an influx of investment.

Arsenal’s relative consistency on the defensive front maintained the Spaniard’s popularity through a barren spell that yielded zero attacking returns in 18 outings. Indeed, Bellerin still lacks a cutting edge in the final third and has managed just three shots on target and one goal all season.

Regardless, the La Masia graduate’s creative influence is shown by the fact that he ranks joint-second among defenders for assists (five). Furthermore, the attack-minded Bellerin sits top among defenders for touches in the final third (806), second for passes received in the final third (522) and joint-top for successful dribbles (97).

Having started the season at 5.5, though, his rise to Fantasy prominence should bring him in line with Laurent Koscielny for the following season, with a hike to 6.0 anticipated.

Elsewhere, Bellerin places top in the Telegraph and Sky Fantasy games and shares the honours with Christian Fuchs among full-backs in the Fantasy League leaderboard.

Laurent Koscielny

Having accrued four goals in 31 appearances, Laurent Koscielny is enjoying his best scoring season in a Gunners strip. Delving into the underlying statistics, the Frenchman charts way down with regards to attempts (18) but has benefited from the second-best shot-conversion rate (21.1%) of any defender that’s clocked over 1,500 minutes.

Although a smattering of niggling injuries prevented him from gaining serious traction in terms of ownership, Koscielny still sits in third spot for both total score (146) and bonus points at the back, earning 18 to Bellerin’s 16.

At a time where Gabriel and Per Mertesacker are continuing to battle it out for a role in Wenger’s XI, there’s no question that Koscielny remains the only reliable option in the heart of the Gunners’ resilient defence. If he can steer clear of injury next time out, his 4.7 points per game average – identical to Bellerin – highlights his appeal.

Nacho Monreal

Rounding off the trio of impressive Arsenal defenders, Nacho Monreal ranks fifth in the FPL rankings for total score (141). Like Bellerin, he began the season cheaper than Koscielny – at a price of 5.5 – but has cemented a starting berth on the left, playing 34 of their 36 fixtures from start to finish.

Despite tallying the same amount of shots as Bellerin (12), the Spain international is still searching for his first goal in three seasons, keeping him below his above-mentioned team-mates in our estimations. On the flip side, Monreal has crafted more key passes (28 to 22) than Bellerin and received more passes in the final third (534) than any other defender, so there’s certainly scope for him to step up his productivity in the final third.

Christian Fuchs

A peripheral figure under Claudio Ranieri at the start of the season, Christian Fuchs didn’t start a league match until Gameweek 8 after a 5-2 home loss to Arsenal in the previous round of fixtures saw the Austrian take over from Jeffrey Schlupp at left-back.

Despite his sluggish start, Fuchs has still managed to pick up more points (145) than any of Ranieri’s backline regulars and sits fourth in the defender standings. In part, this is down to a run from Gameweek 29 that saw the champions concede just nine goals while tallying two more clean sheets (12) than any other team. Fuchs’ penchant for hoovering up bonus points has also been key – the left-back is joint-top alongside Ashley Williams for that metric, with a total of 24 points more than double any Leicester defender.

Moreover, a share of dead-ball duties means he charts fourth among all defenders for key passes (37), highlighting a creative spark that’s produced four assists.

Delving into the data, Fuchs’ average of 4.8 points per game is far superior to any other Leicester defender and second amongst all backline options. Bearing in mind that Fuchs started off the season as the priciest Leicester defender (5.0), his subsequent displays may well ensure he once again comes in at a steeper cost than the rest of Ranieri’s rearguard next time out, with a hike to 5.5 potentially on the cards.

Owing to his dramatic rise to prominence, Fuchs has been the most valuable defender on the Sun’s Fantasy market, ranking second behind Daley Blind despite coming in at less than half the price. The Foxes’ intransigence has also led to him placing joint-top among full-backs in the Fantasy League rankings.

Robert Huth, Wes Morgan, Danny Simpson

Elsewhere in the Foxes camp, Robert Huth, Wes Morgan and Danny Simpson furnished us with a variety of alternatives to the mid-priced Fuchs.

Along with Fuchs, the trio represent the four best value defenders in the FPL game in light of the Foxes’ 15 clean sheets so far. Huth and Morgan have enjoyed a late-season renaissance, producing three and two goals respectively from January onwards, with the German placed joint-top among defenders for shots inside the box (28) in comparison to Morgan’s 18.

Like Fuchs, Simpson was far from our thoughts at the start of the season, having failed to start until Gameweek 8. Whilst a single assist and ten bonus points are overshadowed by his fellow full-back, the former Newcastle man’s initial 4.0 price tag offered the most budget-friendly route into the champions’ resilient defence.

Aaron Cresswell

With three matches left on the Hammers’ agenda, Aaron Cresswell has matched his haul of attacking returns (two goal, four assists) from the previous campaign and amassed two points more, underlining his evolution as a Fantasy asset. Due to West Ham’s defensive injury travails and Slaven Bilic’s recent decision to deploy winger Michail Antonio at right-back, Cresswell has been the only viable route into a rearguard that’s registered 11 clean sheets to date.

Aside from ranking eighth in the FPL defender ranking for total score (131), the former Ipswich Town star lays claim to a point-per game average (3.9) that far outstrips the next-best Irons defender, Angelo Ogbonna (3.0). In addition, the fact that Cresswell charts joint-second for key passes (38) hints towards his capacity for assists, given that Bilic’s free-scoring side sit fourth for goals (60) thus far.

Chris Smalling

Manchester United’s defensive form at the start of the season (eight clean sheets in 12) convinced a multitude of managers to invest in Chris Smalling. Due to Louis van Gaal’s penchant for rotation at the full-back berths and Daley Blind’s classification as a midfielder, the England international has represented the only sure-fire route into the Red Devils’ back line throughout the campaign.

In truth, Smalling’s point-per-game average (4.0) falls well short of what you’d expect from the joint-third-most expensive (6.5) expensive defender. Considering that he’s racked up zero goals, one assist, 15 attempts and two shots on target, last season’s haul (four goals) looks increasingly like an outlier in the broader landscape of his Premier League career.

That being said, selectively recruiting Smalling – most notably for Man United’s double Gameweek 34 – to harness the potential of a defence that’s recorded three more home clean sheets (12) than any other team has proven to be a savvy tactic.

Craig Dawson

The Tony Pulis effect was thrown into sharp relief in the first quarter of West Bromwich Albion’s season as they notched six clean sheets in 10 match-ups. Due to his security of starts and goal against Everton in Gameweek 7, Craig Dawson presented the most appealing case for investment among the Baggies’ back line. His time as a top pick was relatively short-lived, though, given that only Aston Villa have managed fewer shut-outs than West Brom (four to five) since Gameweek 11.

Assuming that the West Midlanders can improve the consistency of their defensive output next term, Dawson’s aerial dominance should ensure that he retains his lustre in the mid-priced bracket. An imposing presence from set pieces, Dawson charts joint-second for goals (four), joint-top for shots inside the box (28) and second for penalty-box touches (82).

Virgil van Dijk

Virgil van Dijk tallied 10 goals across all competitions in his final season with Celtic, so his switch to Southampton last summer was met with great expectations by the Fantasy community. It didn’t take long for the towering Dutchman to deliver, as he inaugurated his spell in the top flight with two goals in five starts. Van Dijk has since added another goal to that tally, portending a fruitful career as an exciting Fantasy option.

Despite missing the opening four Gameweeks, Van Dijk charts joint-fifth among all defenders for shots on target (nine) and joint-sixth for bonus points (16). Talking of bonus points, he racked up eight during Saints’ run of six successive clean sheets from Gameweek 21, giving him a slight edge over team-mate Jose Fonte, whose points-per-game average sits slightly slower than Van Dijk’s (3.5 compared to 3.9).

Scott Dann

Although Crystal Palace failed to muster a clean sheet in their first six outings, Scott Dann’s 14-point haul (goal and assist) in Gamewek 3 thrust him into relevancy in the mid-priced bracket.

Playing for a side that’s fashioned the second-most attempts from set plays (149), the Eagles centre-back has continued to flourish from an attacking standpoint, producing the joint-most goals (five) of any defender. The fact that he also charts top for penalty-box touches (128), joint-top for shots inside the box (28), second for shots on target (28) and third for set-piece attempts (26) further demonstrates his ability to be a leading pick if Palace can tighten up and improve upon a record of eight clean sheets this season.

Charlie Daniels

With three goals and five assists to his name, Charlie Daniels should rightfully be considered the pre-eminent defender from the promoted teams.

In the wake of Callum Wilson’s season-ending injury, the left-back was assigned to spot-kick duty, alerting us to his budget potential at the 4.5 mark. Excluding the penalties, Daniels has still recorded the joint-most assists (five) and fifth-most key passes (36) among defenders, compensating for the Cherries’ lacklustre clean-sheet tally (seven).

As for next season, Daniels’ standout displays could possibly see him priced slightly higher than his defensive team-mates – a scenario that would dampen his appeal, particularly if Simon Francis returns to the right-back berth for 2016/17.

Ashley Williams

For those managers that drafted Ashley Williams into their squads for the winter period, the 4.9-priced centre-back came up trumps, posting 12 bonus points and one goal across six starts. By virtue of the fact that he’s made the second-most interceptions (100), second-most blocks (43) and most clearances (316), the Welshman charts third (782) only to Bellerin (809) and Monreal (808) with respect to the bonus points system. As a consequence, Williams scooped 23 out of a maximum 27 bonus points during the Swans’ nine clean sheets.

Patrick van Aanholt

Priced at 5.0 at the start of the season, the Sunderland left-back plummeted in price after earning seven points in the first ten Gameweeks.

The early-autumn arrival of Sam Allardyce helped transform Van Aanholt’s Fantasy potential, though. In 24 outings under the new manager, the Dutchman has served up points at both ends of the pitch – a total of five goals, three assists and ten bonus points earning him a far more impressive average of 4.29 points per appearance with Big Sam at the helm.

Van Aanholt’s creative endeavours have seen him serve up 27 key passes, which is enough to earn him ninth amongst defenders, though it’s his eye for goal that really stands out – he sits top for total attempts (43) with three matches still left to play. Should the Wearsiders succeed in their battle to beat the drop, the Dutchman’s progress under Allardyce is clearly worth monitoring.