Is Lucas Digne the best value-for-money defender in Dream Team right now?
LUCAS DIGNE (£3.6m) is rolling back the years this season.
The 31-year-old has amassed 67 Dream Team points and ranks seventh among defenders at the time of writing.
Despite his impressive start to the campaign, the Frenchman is still available for just £3.6m and could well be considered the standout value-for-money asset in his position right now.
Rico Lewis (£4m), who ranks second among defenders having earned 82 points, was undoubtedly the bargain selection throughout the first few Gameweeks but the Manchester City teenager is no longer in the affordable price bracket.
In fact, Digne is the only defender with 60+ points to his name who is currently available for less than £4m.
When Aston Villa signed Ian Maatsen (£3m) from Chelsea in a deal worth £37.5million, it seemed that Digne would have to be content with a back-up role.
However, the ex-Everton man has established himself as Unai Emery’s first-choice left-back with the Dutchman having been generally limited to substitute appearances.
Digne ranks second in his position for assists (three) and third for big chances created (five).
But it’s not just his attacking attributes that have made him such a savvy selection.
Only seven defenders have made more tackles and he’s among the top ten for clean sheets too – although the Villains’ could improve in that department as they’ve kept just one in nine league outings so far.
The points total is the number that matters most and Digne’s is very healthy indeed.
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Villa are due to host Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup this evening before Gameweek 10 brings a double header against Tottenham and Club Brugge.
After that, Emery’s men face the daunting task of a trip to Anfield just before the international break.
Digne may have to wait a little while longer to boost his league clean sheet tally given the testing nature of those match-ups but as long as he keeps posing a creative threat going forward he should tick over nicely.
After the break, Villa will play Palace, Chelsea, Brentford and Southampton (alongside Champions League commitments) in what is likely to be a more favourable run of league games.
Digne is currently the fifth-most popular defender in Dream Team with an ownership of 14.2%.
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