Tottenham Hotspur defender Micky van de Ven was the highest scoring player in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) points this weekend.
He produced a huge 23-point return in Tottenham’s 3–0 win over Everton, scoring two goals, helping his team keep a clean sheet and making ten defensive contributions.
Van de Ven – who started the season with an FPL value of just €4.5 million, but is now worth €4.7 million – is the third-ranked defender among fantasy managers. However, 868,412 of those managers left him on the bench in Gameweek 9.
Despite his modest valuation in FPL, Van de Ven is seen as the tenth most valuable centre-back in the world, worth £60 million, according to recent real-world estimates. Those estimates claim that the most valuable centre-back in world football currently is Arsenal’s William Saliba, with a transfer value of £105 million.
Micky van de Ven emerged as the most underrated Premier League player in the FPL this season
After his return of 23 points against Everton, Van de Ven now has 55 points this season.
Although that makes him only the third highest scoring defender in terms of total points – after Arsenal duo Gabriel (68 points) and Jurrien Timber (60 points) – Van de Ven is now the leading pound-for-pound points scorer in the match.
Van de Ven’s current FPL value of £4.7 million divided by his overall points total of 55 gives him a points-per-million (PPM) rating of 11.7.
The next two players in the FPL pound-for-pound rankings this season are both Sunderland stars – which is perhaps unsurprising considering how much the Black Cats have exceeded expectations so far.
| Player (current value) | Team | Pos | Points | Points per million euros |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Van de Ven (£4.7m) | Tottenham | DEF | 55 | 11.7 |
| Roefs (£4.6m) | Sunderland | GK | 52 | 11.3 |
| Mukiele (£4.1m) | Sunderland | DEF | 46 | 11.2 |
| Guehi (£4.9m) | Crystal Palace | DEF | 54 | 11.0 |
| Alderete (£4.1m) | Sunderland | DEF | 45 | 11.0 |
| Rodon (£4.1m) | Leeds | DEF | 44 | 10.7 |
| Gabriel (£6.4m) | Arsenal | DEF | 68 | 10.6 |
| per year (£5.0 million) | Bournemouth | DEF | 53 | 10.6 |
| J. Timber (£6.0m) | Arsenal | DEF | 60 | 10.0 |
| Cash (£4.6m) | Aston Villa | DEF | 46 | 10.0 |
| Truffert (£4.5m) | Bournemouth | DEF | 43 | 9.6 |
| Calafiori (£5.8m) | Arsenal | DEF | 54 | 9.3 |
| Burn (£5.1m) | Newcastle | DEF | 47 | 9.2 |
| Semenyo (£8.1m) | Bournemouth | MIDDLE | 73 | 9.0 |
| Pope (£5.1m) | Newcastle | GK | 46 | 8.9 |
| Humé (£4.5m) | Sunderland | DEF | 39 | 8.7 |
| Munoz (£5.6m) | Crystal Palace | DEF | 48 | 8.6 |
| Hartman (£4.0m) | Burnley | DEF | 34 | 8.5 |
| Cullen (£5.0m) | Burnley | MIDDLE | 42 | 8.4 |
| Richards (£4.5m) | Crystal Palace | DEF | 38 | 8.4 |
How FPL’s most expensive assets are performing on a points per million basis
There are currently only five Premier League players worth £10 million or more in FPL. They are Erling Haaland (£14.7m), Mo Salah (£14.3m), Alexander Isak (£10.5m), Cole Palmer (£10.3m) and Bukayo Saka (£10m).
Of those five, only Haaland and Salah have been available for every match so far, with Palmer, Saka and Isak missing multiple matches due to fitness issues.
Record-breaker Haaland is the Premier League’s top scorer in terms of FPL points this season with 85. But his points per million is just 5.8 – still significantly higher than Salah, whose 42 points average 2.9.
Saka, Palmer and Isak are currently averaging 3.0, 1.1 and 1.0 points per game respectively.
Best FPL XI based on value for money
Below we’ve put together the ultimate Fantasy Premier League team based on their points per million this season.
We have followed FPL rules by selecting no more than two players per club, adhering to squad and formation quotas and staying within the £100 million budget.
The total cost of the team was £89.7 million. The main selection criterion is points per million, rather than total points – which is why Haaland is alone on the bench.
The best FPL team so far this season on a points per million basis
Ultimate FPL squad of the most underrated players
Goalkeepers
- Robin Roefs (Sunderland) – 11.3 points per million (£4.6 million value, 52 points)
- Nick Pope (Newcastle) – 8.9 points per million (£5.2m value, 46 points)
Defenders
- Micky van de Ven (Tottenham) – 11.7 points per million (£4.8 million, 55 points)
- Nordi Mukiele (Sunderland) – 11.2 points per million (£4.1 million, 46 points)
- Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace) – 11.0 points per million (£4.9m, 54 points)
- Joe Rodon (Leeds) – 10.7 points per million (£4.1 million, 44 points)
- Gabriel (Arsenal) – 10.6 points per million (£6.4 million, 68 points)
Midfielders
- Antoine Semenyo (Bournemouth) – 9.0 points per million (£8.1 million, 73 points)
- Josh Cullen (Burnley) – 8.4 points per million (£5.0m, 42 points)
- Moisés Caicedo (Chelsea) – 8.1 points per million (£5.9m, 48 points)
- João Palhinha (Tottenham) – 8.0 points per million (£5.5m, 44 points)
- Anthony (Burnley) – 7.9 points per million (£5.7 million, 45 points)
Forward
- Thiago (Brentford) — 7.3 points per million (£6.2 million, 45 points)
- Kroupi Jr (Bournemouth) – 5.9 points per million (£4.6m, 27 points)
- Erling Haaland (Man City) — 5.8 points per million (£14.7 million, 85 points)
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