Football Manager 2019: Best Bargain Left Backs

Defenders are one of the trickiest positions to fill in FM19 and left backs are no exception. Quality young players are wildly expensive, and even veterans can carry a heavy price tag that excludes most teams from ever finding a solution at the position. Unless of course, you know where to look.

How to find the best bargain left backs in Football Manager 2019

This article is looking at the best cheap left backs in FM 19. These are players that are naturals at either left back or left wing back. They are available for an initial fee of under £5 million, though you may need to use some add-ons to keep that initial fee down. So who are the best bargain left backs in Football Manager 2019?

For a full list of ALL the best bargain left backs see the table at the bottom of the page.

Benoit Tremoulinas (CA 136 - PA 148)

Age: 32

Position: D (L), WB (L)

Club: Free Agent

Country: France

Best Attributes: Natural Fitness (16), Teamwork (16), Crossing (16) 

Value: N/A

Wage: N/A

Benoit Tremoulinas played most of his career at Bordeaux, racking up 164 appearances before moving to Dynamo Kyiv in 2013. He struggled to make an impact there, getting loaned to Saint-Etienne and then sold after a year to Sevilla. He has been without a club since the end of the 2017 season.

In FM 19 Tremoulinas is a quality player. He has decent speed (14 pace, 13 acceleration) and is good on the ball (14 technique, 13 passing, 13 dribbling). He is a solid defender as well (12 tacking, 12 marking) and has good mental attributes (16 teamwork, 15 off the ball, 14 composure).

Adriano (CA 135 - PA 155)

Age: 33

Position: D (RL), WB (RL)

Club: Besiktas

Country: Brazil

Best Attributes: Passing (16), Positioning (15), Anticipation (15)

Value: £3.6 million

Wage: £37,500 a week

Adriano first came to prominence with Sevilla. He joined them in 2004 and played with them for six years before Barcelona came calling. He moved to the Catalan giants for £8.5 million in 2010 and played over 100 games for them before joining Besiktas in 2016.

In Football Manager 2019 Adriano is still a good left back. He has good mental attributes (15 positioning, 15 teamwork, 15 composure) and is good on the ball (16 passing, 15 technique, 15 crossing). However, he does lack athleticism now (10 pace, 10 stamina).

Frank Fabra (CA 135 - PA 140)

Age: 27

Position: D (L), WB (L)

Club: Boca

Country: Colombia

Best Attributes: Acceleration (16), Pace (15), Crossing (15)

Value: £1.2 million

Wage: £5,500 a week

Frank Fabra started his career with Envigado in Colombia, playing some 90 games for them before eventually moving to Argentina side Boca Juniors in 2016 where he has become a regular. He's also won 19 caps with Colombia, making his debut in 2015.

In FM 19 Fabra is a solid left back option. He has good speed (16 acceleration, 15 pace, 15 stamina) and can be a threat coming forward (15 crossing, 13 passing, 13 dribbling). Defensively Fabra is strong (12 tackling, 11 marking) and he has some good mental attributes too (14 composure, 14 teamwork, 13 off the ball).

Andreas Ulmer (CA 134 - PA 135)

Age: 32

Position: D (L), WB (L), M (L) 

Club: RB Salzburg

Country: Austria

Best Attributes: Work Rate (18), Teamwork (17), Passing (15)

Value: £2.4 million

Wage: £26,000 a week

Andreas Ulmer started his career with Austria Wien, but only made three first team appearances before moving to SV Ried in 2008. In 2009 he joined RB Salzburg though, and found himself a regular spot with the team. He has since made over 200 appearances for the team and won multiple league titles.

In FM 19 Ulmer has terrific mental attributes (18 work rate, 17 teamwork, 15 bravery) that underpin his play. He is good coming forward (15 passing, 12 dribbling) and solid defensively (13 marking, 11 tackling). He also has pretty good athleticism to carry him up and down the flank (14 stamina, 14 acceleration, 13 pace).

Luisinho (CA 133 - PA 140)

Age: 33

Position: D (L), WB (L), M (L), AM (L)

Club: Huesca

Country: Portugal

Best Attributes: Flair (16), Acceleration (15), Crossing (15)

Value: £1.5 million

Wage: £11,500 a week

Luisinho has moved around a lot in his career. He started off with Vila Real in Portugal before joining Braga. He eventually worked his way up to Benfica in 2012, but only lasted one season with them, but he found a home with Spanish club Deportivo La Coruna, where he played 142 games from 2013 to 2018. This summer he moved to Huesca.

 In FM 19 Luisinho is extremely versatile, capable of playing anywhere on the left side. He is very good going forward (15 dribbling, 15 crossing, 15 technique, 15 finishing) and a little weak defensively (11 tackling, 7 marking). He still has decent speed (15 acceleration, 14 pace) and a couple of good mental attributes though (16 flair, 15 off the ball, 14 determination).

Lorenzo Melgarejo (CA 133 - PA 133)

Age: 27

Position: D (L), AM (L)

Club: Spartak Moscow

Country: Paraguay

Best Attributes: Determination (16), Acceleration (15), Work Rate (15)

Value: £2.2 million

Wage: £34,000 a week

Lorenzo Melgarejo got his big shot in 2012 when Benfica signed him. He played just 21 games with them after a year out on loan and clearly didn't make a big impact as he was soon sold off to Russian team Kuban Krasnodar. In 2016 Spartak Moscow signed him for an undisclosed fee where he has since played 60 games for the Russian team.

In FM 19 Melgarejo has a handful of very good mental attributes (16 determination, 15 work rate, 14 teamwork) and reasonable speed across the field (15 acceleration, 14 pace). He is pretty good on the ball (13 first touch, 13 finishing, 13 technique) but can be shaky defensively (10 tackling, 10 marking).

Jose Holebas (CA 132 - PA 145)

Age: 33

Position: D (L), WB (L)

Club: Watford

Country: Greece

Best Attributes: Determination (18), Natural Fitness (17), Stamina (16)

Value: £2.5 million

Wage: £30,000 a week

Jose Holebas was born in Germany and started his career there, eventually moving to 1860 Munich in 2006 and making over 70 appearances for the first team. In 2010 he moved to Olympiacos in Greece where he played for four years and won his first cap with Greece. In 2014 he moved to Roma and then in 2015 he moved to Watford in the Premier League where he still plays today.

In FM 19 Holebas has good speed (15 pace, 14 acceleration) and strong mental attributes (18 determination, 16 bravery, 15 work rate). He can produce when he comes forward (15 crossing, 12 passing) and is solid defensively (14 tackling, 10 marking). 

Yury Zhirkov (CA 132 - PA 160)

Age: 34

Position: D (L)

Club: Zenit

Country: Russia

Best Attributes: Determination (18), Technique (16), First Touch (15)

Value: £400,000

Wage:  £33,500 a week

Yury Zhirkov came up through the Spartak Tambov youth system before joining CSKA Moscow in 2004. He played over 100 games there and made an £18 million move to Chelsea in 2009. That didn't work out too well and he only played in London for two years, he bounced around Russia again and in 2016 joined Zenit St. Petersburg.

In Football Manager 2019 Zhirkov is 34 years old, but he still has something left to give. He is good on the ball (16 technique, 15 first touch, 12 passing) and solid defensively (13 marking, 11 tackling). He has good mental attributes (18 determination, 15 anticipation, 14 off the ball) to go along with reasonable athleticism (14 acceleration, 13 pace). 

Damian Perez (CA 132 - PA 138)

Age: 29

Position: D (L), WB (L)

Club: Colo Colo

Country: Argentina

Best Attributes: Work Rate (16), Pace (15), Positioning (15)

Value: £1.3 million

Wage: £3,400 a week

Damian Perez has played his entire career in South America or Mexico. He started his footballing career with Arsenal de Sarandi in Argentina, playing 152 games for them before moving to Velez for a season and then to Mexican side Club Tijuana in 2016. He now plays for Colo Colo in Chile.

In FM 19 Perez is a solid left back with good defensive skills (15 marking, 14 tackling), and he can participate in build-up play (13 passing, 13 crossing, 12 technique). He has good mental attributes (16 work rate, 15 positioning, 15 concentration) and enough athleticism to keep getting up and down the flank (15 pace, 14 stamina, 13 acceleration).

Ridgeciano Haps (CA 132 - PA 139)

Age: 25

Position: D (L), WB (L), M (L), AM (L)

Club: Feyenoord

Country: Holland

Best Attributes: Work Rate (16), Acceleration (15), Pace (15)

Value: £3.8 million

Wage: £10,500 a week

Ridgeciano Haps started his career with AZ Alkmaar having progressed through their youth system. He made his first-team debut in 2013 and played 77 games for them before making a £5.75 million move to Feyenoord in 2017.

In Football Manager 2019 Haps provides a lot more future than other names on this list. He has good speed (15 acceleration, 15 pace) and is well balanced between attack (14 dribbling, 13 technique, 11 passing) and defence (12 tackling, 11 marking).

All the best bargain left backs on Football Manager 2019