'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAf/2gAIAQEAAAAAkYv/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA/9oACAECEAAAAH//xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAE/9oACAEDEAAAAF//xAAeEAEAAgIBBQAAAAAAAAAAAAACAQMAERIEQVFh4f/aAAgBAQABPwC3rSABXVxrJ2u/Nz59anLJpFiCMbM6nQ+5/8QAFxEBAAMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQADIf/aAAgBAgEBPwCrVn//xAAaEQEAAQUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACAQAEEiHx/9oACAEDAQE/AL0wAMdciv/Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Manchester City and Liverpool absolutely dominated the 2018/19 season of the Premier League from start to finish, making their players incredibly popular among FPL managers.
With premium defenders priced extremely highly this season, a lot of research goes into picking defenders and more specifically, managers will be on the lookout for defenders who could return points on both ends of the pitch.
Picking defenders is never an easy task and it can be time consuming to say the least, which a lot of chopping and changing.
Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold were the top-scoring defenders in FPL last season and the likes of Matt Doherty, Lucas Digne and Aymeric Laporte were all popular.
So here we go, after much deliberation, we've picked out 3 defenders who we think will be really popular choices for the forthcoming season.
#1 Trent Alexander-Arnold - £7 million
Trent Alexander-Arnold's 2018/19 season was astonishing to say the least. Despite missing a month through injury, the young Englishman went on to break the Premier League record for most assists by a defender in a season, registering 12 assists.
The young Scouser was the third highest scoring defender in the game, behind teammates Andy Robertson and Virgil van Dijk. With 1 goal and 12 assists, Alexander-Arnold racked up 185 FPL points, 25 of those in bonuses.
Alexander-Arnold is widely regarded as the best in the business when it comes to crossing ability and the 20 year-old will have one eye on his own Premier League record as he looks to better it this season.
The £7 million is definitely steep but a player of his quality will guarantee points as he's one of Liverpool's main outlets in attack.
Liverpool boasted the best defensive record in the country last season and their exploits at the back coupled with Alexander-Arnold ability in the final-third of the pitch makes him an absolute must-have in FPL.
#2 Andy Robertson - £7 million
Andy Robertson was one of the most consistent performers in the Premier League last season. The Scotland captain played over 3000 minutes of Premier League football and played his part in both sides of the pitch as Liverpool went on to finish second in the Premier League with a record breaking tally of 97 points.
The 25-year-old is arguably the best left-back in world football at the moment and was the top scoring defenders in FPL last season, accumulating 213 points, 29 of those in bonuses.
Liverpool's full-back pairing registered a whopping 23 assists in the PL last season and although Robertson led the internal battle for a sizable chunk of the season, Alexander-Arnold's flourish in the business end of the season meant he edged it by a solitary assist.
Robertson is one of the first names on the team sheet for Jurgen Klopp and despite the £7 million price-tag, he is sure to be one of the most purchased defenders in the game.
#3 Benjamin Mendy - £6 million
Benjamin Mendy's inclusion might come as a controversial choice but the forgotten left-back could be a game changer for Manchester City.
The Frenchman has been terribly unlucky with injuries since his move to England but he's shown in glimpses why the Cityzens agreed to pay big money for him.
Mendy played just under 900 minutes of football, but the left-back registered 6 assists last season, which is staggeringly high considering how less he played last season.
Manchester City have won back-to-back Premier League titles and the likes of Kyle Walker and Aymeric Laporte have been popular FPL choices in recent season.
At a price £6 million, Mendy could turn out to be the bargain of the season if he stays clear of injuries.
Honorable mentions
Alexander-Arnold, Robertson and Mendy aside, there are plenty of other defenders in various price ranges who could make a big impact next season. The likes of Virgil van Dijk, Aymeric Laporte, Matt Doherty were all popular names last season.
The usual suspects aside, we've taken the liberty to select two defenders in particular who in all honesty might not be as popular as the big guns, but could turn out to be valuable options nonetheless.
Lucas Digne - £6 million
The French left-back struggled for game time at Barcelona and made a switch to Everton in the summer of 2018. Digne came with a reputation of being decisive in the final third and he didn't disappoint.
The 25-year-old left-back shared the Everton Player of the Year award with Idrissa Gueye and was the standout player in the defense as Everton finished seventh in the Premier League table.
The Frenchman was in scintillating form, playing just under 3000 minutes for the Blues on his debut season. He was particularly deadly with his free-kicks and scored multiple long range screamers, tallying an impressive 4 goals and 5 assists and finished the season with 158 points.
At £6 million, he presents himself as a very decent option and considering his exploits last season, he is sure to be a popular choice among FPL managers.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka - £5.5 million
Aaron Wan-Bissaka had a breakthrough season at Crystal Palace. Starting the season at a meager £4 million, the young Englishman was an unknown commodity despite racking up a handful of appearances in the 2017/18 season.
Wan-Bissaka's tally of 3 assists does not set the world alight but he went on to register 120 FPL points last season, a respectable return for a full-back outside the top-six.
His move to Manchester United makes him a viable FPL option and the £5.5 million price-tag will tempt a lot of FPL managers.
After a lot of thought and frantically running through last season's stats, we've finally made our picks. Do any of these players get in to your team? Have a particular differential in mind?
Let us know in the comments below!
