Fantasy Bundesliga tips: Defenders to consider for the start of the 2024/25 season

With the new Bundesliga season just around the corner, we are ready to give you a helping hand with your Fantasy Bundesliga team.

In this article, the second of a series of position-by-position player recommendations, we take a look at the defenders you should have on your radar when building your squad.

Budget options:

Bruno Ogbus, Freiburg - 2 million
Surprisingly, Ogbus made his senior debut in Freiburg's 4-0 DFB-Pokal win over Osnabrück, playing a solid game at right-back and providing an assist. With Kiliann Sildillia expected to leave, Ogbus is competing with Lukas Kübler for a place in the starting line-up and could be set for another start under new Freiburg coach Julian Schuster, who presumably knows him well as the club's former talent management coordinator. Although he's not certain to keep his starting place, he has a real chance of starting, unlike the 1 million defenders in the game.

Fin Stevens, St. Pauli - 4 million
A new signing from Brentford, Stevens looks set to start at right wing-back for St. Pauli. The Wales international, who spent last season on loan at Oxford United in English League One, played 71 minutes in St. Pauli's 3-2 DFB-Pokal win over Halle and started all of their pre-season game as wells. However, the fact that Lars Ritzka made a good impression against Halle, scoring the winner after coming on as a substitute for Stevens, leaves just a bit of doubt as to who will get the nod at right wing-back against Heidenheim.

Omar Traoré, Heidenheim - 6 million
Traoré proved to be a very popular budget pick last season, costing just 1 million at the start of the season. He's a bit more expensive this time around, but is still one of the cheaper starters to consider, with Heidenheim starting the season with fairly favorable fixtures against St. Pauli and Augsburg. Most recently, he won an impressive six ground duels and completed three dribbles in Heidenheim's 4-0 DFB-Pokal win over Regionalliga side Villingen.

Mid-range options:

Eric Smith, St. Pauli - 8 million
8 million might seem a lot of money to spend on a centre-back for a newly promoted team, but considering he's on all the set pieces for St. Pauli, including penalties, it might be worth it. He provided an assist in St. Pauli's 3-0 pre-season friendly win over Atalanta and was one of the standout performers in the 3-2 DFB-Pokal win over Halle, completing 111 passes, 20 long balls and 3 crosses.

Kaishu Sano, Mainz - 8 million
The new Mainz signing is listed as a defender, but will actually play alongside Nadiem Amiri in central midfield. A very hard-working player, Sano should score plenty of points from won duels especially, and he was recently praised highly by Mainz coach Bo Henriksen for his energetic playing style. At 8 million, he's a bit cheaper than fellow Mainz players Anthony Caci and Philipp Mwene, who are also interesting from a Fantasy perspective. 

Pavel Kaderabek, Hoffenheim - 10 million
Hoffenheim start the season with a favorable home game against newly-promoted Holstein Kiel, making the attacking wing-back an intriguing option at 10 million. A tireless worker on the right flank, Kaderabek is capable of picking up points from both defensive and attacking activities. 

Yan Couto, Borussia Dortmund - 12 million
Given his attacking profile, Couto is certainly an interesting option from a Fantasy perspective. The big question is whether to get him now or wait until his starting spot is more certain. The Brazilian, who was a key player for Girona last season, started on the bench against Phönix Lübeck in the DFB-Pokal and made an immediate impact, providing the assist for Dortmund's last goal in the 4-1 win. There's a good chance that BVB coach Nuri Sahin will hand him a starting berth this time around, but it's not out of the question that Jamie Gittens and the reliable Julian Ryerson will start at the wing-back positions once more.

Mitchell Weiser, Werder Bremen - 13 million
A long-time Fantasy Bundesliga darling, Weiser averaged the fourth-most points among the defenders last season when his scores are converted to the new scoring system, behind only Grimaldo, Frimpong and Mittelstädt. Playing as a right wing-back, he's always involved for Werder and is capable of scoring good points from both defensive and attacking actions.

Premium options:

Nico Schlotterbeck, Borussia Dortmund - 14 million
Schlotterbeck's playing style is well suited to the new scoring system, with his ability to win duels and make pinpoint passes likely to see him rack up plenty of points. Last season, he was the fifth-highest scoring defender with an average of 211.4 points per game when his output is converted to the new scoring system.

David Raum, RB Leipzig - 15 million
Known for his ability to cross the ball, Raum racked up two goals and 10 assists last season. The German international takes most of Leipzig's set pieces, which alone should earn him plenty of points. Moreover, Leipzig have one of the most favorable opening fixtures as they take on a Bochum side who have just been knocked out of the DFB-Pokal by Regensburg.

Jeremie Frimpong, Bayer Leverkusen - 18 million
Frimpong has been linked with a move away from Bayer Leverkusen, but it's looking increasingly likely that he will stay. He may be listed as a defender, but in reality the Dutchman is more of a striker, using his blistering pace and dribbling ability to score and set up goals. With nine goals and nine assists last season, he was involved in a goal in 58% of his Bundesliga appearances.

Alejandro Grimaldo, Bayer Leverkusen - 20 million
Costing two million more, Grimaldo is another player who in reality is operating more as an attacker than a defender. He had a hand in a staggering 25 Bundesliga goals last season (10 goals, 15 assists), takes set-pieces for Leverkusen and is one of their most consistent starters, making him hard to overlook.