DefCon Points in FPL: Are We Witnessing a Decline?

Tom Hadley – a one-time world number one in FPL – is the latest addition to our ever-growing team of contributors.

This season he will be publishing regular data-driven articles, mainly around defensive contribution points (DefCon).

In this piece, he picks the leading defenders and best opponents for DefCon points – and asks if we’re witnessing a decline.

I’m back with another DefCon update! It’s time to put all prejudices aside and examine where the current value of defense lies and whether we should still put all our eggs in the “DefCon basket.”

Best Opponents for DefCon Points

It’s been relatively unchanged for a few weeks, save for a position here or there. These nine teams (with Liverpool starring twice) represent a pretty good guide to the predictability of DefCon points – especially for centre-backs.

Roughly 50% of center backs are likely to reach the DefCon threshold against these teams. And with virtually every team having their specialist DefCon center back, it’s even more likely to be those players who make the cut against the aforementioned teams.

My rule of thumb is to play my best DefCon collectibles in almost every game, but this chart can help tip any 50/50 benching dilemmas towards the player with a defensive contribution-friendly lineup.

It’s also quite interesting that it’s not necessarily the tops that earn DefCon points. Arsenal and Liverpool are there, of course, but you also have the likes of Brentford and Crystal Palace, two long throw specialists, who have huge numbers.