Ranked in the top 3 of this list are two players from the winners of this competition: West Ham United. At different stages of the competition (as we can see from the types of defensee in which they obtained those ratings), these players were outstanding.
| Player | Rating | Defense | Minutes Played | Team |
| Declan Rice | 8.41 | Back 4 | 487 | West Ham United |
| Yari Verschaeren | 8.31 | Back 4 | 554 | Anderlecht |
| Manuel Lanzini | 8.28 | Back 5 | 487 | West Ham United |
| Alex Baena | 8.18 | Back 4 | 548 | Villarreal |
| Mario Lemina | 8.18 | Back 4 | 350 | Nice |
| Tijjani Reijnders | 8.15 | Back 4 | 987 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Dia Saba | 7.88 | Back 4 | 462 | Sivasspor |
| Giorgi Chakvetadze | 7.80 | Back 4 | 560 | Slovan Bratislava |
| Sven Mijnans | 7.76 | Back 4 | 524 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Khéphren Thuram | 7.70 | Back 4 | 587 | Nice |
| Juraj Kucka | 7.63 | Back 4 | 655 | Slovan Bratislava |
| Mark Brink | 7.57 | Back 4 | 387 | Silkeborg |
| Khéphren Thuram | 7.56 | Back 5 | 287 | Nice |
| Matías Vecino | 7.50 | Back 4 | 291 | Lazio |
| Andy Diouf | 7.49 | Back 5 | 358 | Basel |
| Emil Breivik | 7.48 | Back 5 | 433 | Molde |
| Samuel Chukwueze | 7.46 | Back 4 | 491 | Villarreal |
| Jarrod Bowen | 7.44 | Back 4 | 476 | West Ham United |
| Sofyan Amrabat | 7.41 | Back 4 | 959 | Fiorentina |
| Vladimír Weiss | 7.40 | Back 4 | 444 | Slovan Bratislava |
| Nicolás González | 7.38 | Back 4 | 825 | Fiorentina |
| Jesper Karlsson | 7.37 | Back 4 | 431 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Michał Skóraś | 7.36 | Back 4 | 1036 | Lech Poznań |
| Lucas Paquetá | 7.34 | Back 4 | 471 | West Ham United |
| Kasper Kusk | 7.30 | Back 4 | 374 | Silkeborg |
| Malcolm Edjouma | 7.25 | Back 4 | 429 | FCSB |
| Sven Kums | 7.25 | Back 5 | 713 | Gent |
| Gustav Wikheim | 7.24 | Back 4 | 492 | Djurgårdens |
| Hovhannes Harutyunyan | 7.20 | Back 5 | 483 | Pyunik |
| Antonín Barák | 7.15 | Back 4 | 452 | Fiorentina |
| Andy Diouf | 7.14 | Back 4 | 686 | Basel |
| Dor Micha | 7.13 | Back 4 | 336 | Hapoel Be’er Sheva |
| Jordy Clasie | 7.12 | Back 4 | 994 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Sivert Mannsverk | 7.12 | Back 5 | 501 | Molde |
| Giacomo Bonaventura | 7.11 | Back 4 | 1063 | Fiorentina |
| Saïd Benrahma | 7.09 | Back 4 | 419 | West Ham United |
| Deniz Turuc | 7.07 | Back 4 | 484 | İstanbul Başakşehir |
| Ellyes Skhiri | 7.04 | Back 4 | 392 | Köln |
| Fabien Ourega | 7.04 | Back 4 | 538 | Žalgiris |
| Magnus Eriksson | 7.04 | Back 4 | 554 | Djurgårdens |
| Manu Trigueros | 7.03 | Back 4 | 298 | Villarreal |
Conditions for the presented data:
– Minimum minutes played in the season: 270 minutes (equivalent to 3 full games) per type of defense played (Back 4 or Back 5);
– UEL Qualifying Round data excluded;
Data from FBref.