FIFA 22 Ultimate Team best center-backs: Cheap and meta players
While attackers often get the headlines, defenders are just as important in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team. A solid backline can be the difference between winning and losing, so here are the best, cheap, and meta center-backs you should buy in FUT 22.
Crafting the perfect Ultimate Team can take a lot of work. It usually involves hours of experimenting to find the right combination of players and chemistry to be a success in FUT Champions.
What goes without saying is that having the best players in each position is vitally important to being competitive when faced with high-skilled opponents.
We’ve picked out the center-backs that are dominating this year’s FIFA and split them up into three categories.
- Best center-backs in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team
- Meta center-backs in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team
- Cheap center-backs in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team
Best center-backs in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team
Even though it’s the strikers that tend to get the attention, keeping things tight at the back is just as important.
Center-backs need to have the intelligence to read the game when opponents are in position, but also have the speed to recover when a pacey forward inevitably beats the offside trap.
Based on EA’s player ratings, these are the best non-Icon center-backs on the market in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team.
| Player Name | Club | Rating | Average Price |
| Ruben Dias (TOTY) | Manchester City | 97 | 400,000 |
| Virgil van Dijk (TOTS) | Liverpool | 96 | 260,000 |
| Marquinhos (TOTS) | PSG | 95 | 638,000 |
| Kalidou Koulibaly (TOTS) | Napoli | 95 | 236,000 |
| Eder Militao (TOTS) | Real Madrid | 95 | 594,000 |
| Aymeric Laporte (TOTS) | Manchester City | 94 | 380,000 |
| David Alaba (TOTS) | Real Madrid | 94 | 185,000 |
| Jules Kounde (TOTS) | Sevilla | 93 | 298,000 |
| Milan Skriniar (TOTS) | Inter Milan | 92 | 56,000 |
| Evan Ndicka (TOTS) | Eintracht Frankfurt | 92 | 326,000 |
Best meta center-backs in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team
Even though some defenders have unbelievably high ratings, they aren’t always the best ones to buy.
Whether because of their pace, defending, or something else, there are other cards that fit the FIFA 22 meta far better. You’ll see them in FUT Champions teams up and down the land.
Special cards also come out thick and fast, many of which quickly outshine the top-rated players with their stats.
These players will often have lower overall ratings, but a higher market value. Here are the best meta center-backs you should think about using in your squad.
| Player Name | Club | Version | Rating | Average Price |
| Ivan Cordoba | N/A | FUT Captain | 92 | 980,000 |
| Marquinhos | PSG | TOTS | 95 | 638,000 |
| Eder Militao | Real Madrid | TOTS | 95 | 595,000 |
| Ruben Dias | Manchester City | TOTY | 97 | 400,000 |
| Aymeric Laporte | Manchester City | TOTS | 94 | 380,000 |
| Evan Ndicka | Eintracht Frankfurt | TOTS | 92 | 326,000 |
| Presnel Kimpembe | PSG | RTTF | 87 | 286,000 |
| Lukas Klostermann | RB Leipzig | Fantasy FUT | 91 | 285,000 |
| Jules Kounde | Sevilla | TOTS | 93 | 279,000 |
| Virgil van Dijk | Liverpool | TOTS | 96 | 258,000 |
Best cheap center-backs in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team
Some of the defenders we’ve listed there are probably going to set you back a few coins, but this isn’t always possible if you’re just starting out or if you’re respecting a budget.
In the early stages of your FUT journey, you might just want someone who can keep you competitive while you save up for six-figure meta cards.
Luckily, this year’s notoriously slow market means you can bag some outstanding cards without breaking the bank.
Here are the cheap gold defenders you should buy in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team.
| Player Name | Club | Rating | Average Price |
| Presnel Kimpembe | PSG | 83 | 5,700 |
| Antonio Rudiger | Chelsea | 83 | 1,700 |
| Jules Kounde | Sevilla | 83 | 2,500 |
| Dayot Upamecano | Bayern Munich | 82 | 2,600 |
| Joe Gomez | Liverpool | 82 | 2,400 |
| Diego Carlos | Sevilla | 82 | 2,000 |
| Eder Militao | Real Madrid | 82 | 2,900 |
| Lukas Klostermann | RB Leipzig | 80 | 2,200 |
| Maxence Lacroix | Wolfsburg | 79 | 2,000 |
| Nathan Ake | Manchester City | 78 | 1,400 |
For more on FIFA 22 Ultimate Team, check out our lists of the best goalkeepers, full-backs, midfielders, wingers, and strikers.
Image Credits: EA