Here are the best defenders during 2014/15 at earning baseline bonus points under the Fantasy Premier League (FPL)’s Bonus Point System (BPS), which is used to allocate extra points to players at the end of the match.
To find the best I’ve worked out the number of baseline BPS points defenders gain per minute. The baseline points are those where goals, assists and clean sheets are removed giving an accurate figure of how their all round gameplay affects their chances of success in gaining bonus points. I have also avoided times when a player comes on in a match for only a few minutes so that it doesn’t skew the figures.
This is a particularly useful guide to which defenders are likely to gain bonus points if no defenders in their team gain attacking points.
Baseline BPS/min Results
The higher the score the higher the chance of gaining bonus points from all round play.
Arsenal
Monreal: 0.185
Mertesacker: 0.184
Koscielny: 0.178
Bellerin: 0.163
Aston Villa
Okore: 0.169
Hutton: 0.145
Vlaar: 0.123
Cissokho: 0.122
Chelsea
Azpilicueta: 0.174
Terry: 0.169
Cahill: 0.151
Ivanovic: 0.143
Note: Felipe Luis (0.190) and Kurt Zouma (0.181)Â had a high BPS/min but played less than 1,000 minutes.
Crystal Palace
Delaney: 0.125
Ward: 0.118
Kelly: 0.116
Dann: 0.111
Everton
Distin: 0.206
Jagielka: 0.200
Stones: 0.186
Baines: 0.183
Coleman: 0.144
Leicester
Morgan: 0.129
Huth: 0.124
Konchesky: 0.123
Wasilewski: 0.109
Schlupp: 0.100
Liverpool
Sakho: 0.206
Skrtel: 0.185
Lovren: 0.164
Johnson: 0.155
Moreno: 0.139
Manchester City
Clichy: 0.192
Zabaleta: 0.165
Demichelis: 0.164
Kompany: 0.164
Kolarov: 0.160
Mangala: 0.150
Manchester United
Jones: 0.196
Smalling: 0.186
Evans: 0.182
Rojo: 0.174
Shaw: 0.172
Newcastle
Coloccini: 0.148
Haidara: 0.148
Janmaat: 0.134
Dummett: 0.131
Williamson: 0.125
Southampton
Fonte: 0.171
Alderweireld: 0.162
Yoshida: 0.154
Clyne: 0.148
Bertrand: 0.142
Spurs
Vertonghen: 0.171
Rose: 0.155
Walker: 0.151
Fazio: 0.150
Dier: 0.143
Stoke
Cameron: 0.148
Pieters: 0.145
Wilson: 0.141
Muniesa: 0.141
Wollscheid: 0.127
Shawcross: 0.126
Bardsley: 0.119
Sunderland
van Aanholt: 0.166
O’Shea: 0.142
Vergini: 0.134
Brown: 0.130
Jones: 0.069
Swansea
Williams: 0.182
Fernandez: 0.173
Rangel: 0.168
Taylor: 0.158
Naughton: 0.131
West Brom
Wisdom: 0.142
Dawson: 0.124
Lescott: 0.122
McAuley: 0.111
West Ham
Tomkins: 0.148
Reid: 0.139
Collins: 0.135
Cresswell: 0.125
Jenkinson: 0.124
Top 10 Baseline BPS/min earners
1) Sakho (LIV) & Distin (EVE)
3) Jagielka (EVE)
4) Jones (MUN)
5) Clichy (MCI)
6) Stones (EVE) & Smalling (MUN)
8) Skrtel (LIV) & Monreal (ARS)
10) Mertesacker (ARS)
Conclusion
One of the most striking results is that centre backs are far better rewarded for their all round play than full backs. In the top 10 baseline BPS/min earners eight out of ten are centre backs. But in terms of actual bonus point allocation in 2014/15 the the proportion levels out, with the number of centre backs in the top ten reducing to six. This indicates a success for the BPS system to ensure centre backs can compete with full backs, who have a far higher chance of gaining BPS points through their more attacking play.
Amongst the top four sides these results could give a good indication of the players with greater potential of gaining bonus points when they have tough matches and a low scoring game is more likely.
For Arsenal Nacho Monreal continues to impress in this area, while for Manchester City Gael Clichy is something of a baseline BPS magnet, although he faces stiff competition from Aleksander Kolorov for a starting spot.
If Phil Jones can remain fit he could prove a savvy purchase next season and for Chelsea Cesar Azpilicueta’s jack of all trades, master of none accumulation of BPS marks him out as one to consider, especially if Jose Mourinho decides to bring his bus for tough away games.
