Looking beyond the template? These low-owned picks have the fixtures, underlying numbers, and potential upside to be worth considering ahead of Gameweek 1.
A few more names narrowly missed out on the main list, so be sure to check the honourable mentions and takeaway section below for some extra context.
Jaydee Canvot
Ownership: 0.6% Price: £5.0m Position: DEF
🧱 Averaged 11.4 DEFCON/start last season
🧱 Hit DEFCON in 71% of appearances
⚽ New manager's heavy set-piece reliance could boost scoring opportunities
⏱️ Minutes lock
Mamadou Sangare
Ownership: 0.8% Price: £5.5m Position: MID
🧱 Averaged 14.2 DEFCON/90 last season in Ligue 1 - This would have made him the highest DEFCON/90 MID in FPL last season
⚽ 3 goals, 4 assists from 29 starts last season
💰 Club record signing
James Hill
Ownership: 1.3% Price: £5.5m Position: DEF
🧱 Hit DEFCON 59% last season
🧱 Projected to hit DEFCON 69% in first 5 fixtures (the next best is 58!)
⏱️ Minutes lock
Tarik Muharemovic
Ownership: 1.3% Price: £5.0m Position: DEF
🧱 Averaged 10.7 DEFCON per/start last season in the Serie A
🧱 Averaged 17 DEFCON per/start in the World Cup for Bosnia
⏱️ Minutes lock
📈 Favourable early fixtures
Dominic Solanke
Ownership: 2.6% Price: £6.0m Position: FWD
🏅Manager Roberto De Zerbi stated that he is their first-choice striker
🏅First-choice penalty taker
⚽ Highest xPts amongst strikers under £8.0m on FPL Team projections
⚽ Lone striker system
📈 Heavily improved team around him
📈 Favourable early fixtures
Honeable mentions
Gonzalo Garcia (0.6%) - New signing who looks to be the nailed-on striker with penalties for Fulham
Tarik Muharemović (1.3%) - New signing who averaged 10.7 DEFCON per/start last season in the Serie A
Kritoffer Ajer (1.5%) - Should start during Brentford's favourable early fixtures and hit DEFCON 45% last season
Malick Thiaw (2.1%) - Projected to average 4.5xPts per game this season.
Kevin Schade (2.2%) - Led the league amongst MID last season in xG (12.08 xG) and Big Chances (22)
Trai Hume (2.3%) - Looks to be an FPL DEF playing as a winger in pre-season for Sunderland
Luka Vuskovic (2.9%) - New signing who averaged 12.4 DEFCON per/start last season in the Bundesliga
The Takeaway:
Differentials can be a great way to gain an advantage in FPL, but there is no need to fill your squad with them. One or two carefully selected low-owned picks can provide upside without taking unnecessary risks.
You’ll notice many players in this article have strong DEFCON potential.
Defensive contributions are a great way to raise a player’s floor, especially at cheaper price points.
A defender who hit DEFCON in 50% of games last season would have earned around 38 extra points, the equivalent of roughly 13 assists.
A £4.5m defender delivering that level of attacking output would likely be priced much higher.
DEFCON defenders are a smart way to add reliable value to your squad rather than relying on risky bench punts.
