There is just one Nottingham Forest defender in over 1% of FPL teams &#8211; Ola Aina (£4.4m) at 3.3%. Is that about to change?
If so, which member of their defence is your route onto the bandwagon? <a href="https://www.squawka.com/">Squawka</a> is here to help you make sense of Forest defensive assets.
Visit Squawka’s FPL tips page for value picks in all positions.

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<h3>Why buy a Nottingham Forest defender? </h3>
The fixtures are a selling point &#8211; all but one of Forest&#8217;s next six Premier League matches have a Fixture Difficulty Rating (FDR) of two. The only outlier is Gameweek 7’s trip to Chelsea, which has an FDR of four.
Right now Forest are defending at an elite level. In 2024, they have conceded an average of 1.18 Expected Goals (xG) per match. Only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have better records.
This translated to just three clean sheets throughout the year. However, two of those came this season under new manager Nuno Espirito Santo. Is that underlying defensive data about to surface?
 If the weekend’s impressive win – and clean sheet – at Anfield has you convinced, here are the FPL targets you’ll want to consider:
&nbsp;
Ola Aina
<ul>
<li>Price: £4.4m</li>
<li>Teams selected by %: 3.3</li>
</ul>
Aina completed the full 90 minutes in each of Forest&#8217;s three most recent Premier League outings, suggesting his starting spot is guaranteed.
During the Reds&#8217; last outing, he was stationed at right-back, having previously operated on the other flank.
Aina has the most bonus points of any Forest defender with five, and that stands to reason with him attempting the most take-ons (seven) while creating two chances and attempting two shots on goal.
His aggressive forward play could tip the balance, and furthermore, he is the joint-cheapest of Forest’s main defensive options, albeit by not much (£0.1m).
<div id="attachment_66987" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-66987" class="wp-image-66987 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T203807.097.jpg" alt="" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T203807.097.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T203807.097-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T203807.097-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T203807.097-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Ola Aina&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
&nbsp;
Murillo 
<ul>
<li>Price: £4.5m</li>
<li>Teams selected by %: 0.6</li>
</ul>
Murillo is Forest’s only outfield ever-present so far this season. He’s also played 1,919 minutes in 2024, around 500 more than any Forest player – a testament to the performances that saw him reportedly valued at £70m in the Summer as well as an unblemished injury record.
So the main reason to sign the Brazilian on FPL is his availability and regular game time. Murillo is unlikely to deliver many attacking returns &#8211; he has never scored a professional goal, and averages one shot on target in the Premier League every 526 minutes.
He is renowned for his passing ability, but this only translates to roughly a chance created every five games.
Murillo&#8217;s output in terms of defensive metrics suggests you could expect to receive the odd bonus point if Forest keep a clean sheet, but that&#8217;s not a guarantee from week to week.
<div id="attachment_66988" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-66988" class="wp-image-66988 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212012.831.jpg" alt="" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212012.831.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212012.831-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212012.831-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212012.831-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Murillo&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
&nbsp;
Nikola Milenkovic
<ul>
<li>Price: £4.5m</li>
<li>Teams selected by %: 0.3</li>
</ul>
Standing alongside Murillo is the towering Nikola Milenković, who relocated from Fiorentina in the summer, with many lauding the acquisition.
Despite being part of two Forest teams that kept a clean sheet this season, Milenkovic has not been rewarded with a bonus point.
However, he has amassed 0.98 xG this season, the most of any Premier League defender, having found himself on the end of two ‘Big Chances’ (both missed).
This is what people might expect from a 6 ft 5 ins defender. However, the sample size is small, from four games and only three shots on goal.
It’s also not necessarily reflective of Milenkovic’s more recent attacking output at Fiorentina; his last league goal was in November 2022.
<div id="attachment_66990" style="width: 808px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-66990" class="wp-image-66990 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212140.224.jpg" alt="" width="798" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212140.224.jpg 798w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212140.224-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212140.224-768x626.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212140.224-610x497.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 798px) 100vw, 798px" />Milenkovic&#8217;s <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a></div>
&nbsp;
Neco Williams vs Alex Moreno
<ul>
<li>Price: £4.5m vs £4.4m</li>
<li>Teams selected by %: 0.6 vs 0.5</li>
</ul>
Perhaps we&#8217;ve saved the toughest question for last.
Neco Williams boasts the highest ICT Index rating (14.5) of any Forest defender while also topping the charts when it comes to creativity (48.9) and threat (40.0).
Across four outings, he leads for Forest defenders in terms of chances created (three) and shots (seven).
Going back further, between April and now, the Welsh right-back averages 2.01 shots per game &#8211; more than any Premier League defender bar Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Yet Williams has developed a reputation for being a foul machine, and has already committed four this term, leading to one yellow card.
Williams’ game time is also vulnerable to the emergence of Alex Moreno, who started and completed the historic win at Liverpool at right-back.
The Aston Villa loanee made six tackles, the most of any defender across the Premier League this gameweek, and was included in many a Team of the Week.
Last season at Villa, Moreno started 11 times and averaged 0.96 chances created per 90, failing to assist but scoring twice.
With Aina playing so well, his spot looks secure. There is a feeling among some Forest fans that it’s Moreno’s turn to get a run in the starting XI.
It’s difficult to recommend signing either him or Williams right now, but a gamble on Moreno at £4.4m could tempt some. Aina, as reflected by his 3.3% ownership, is likely a safer selection at the same price.
<div id="attachment_66989" style="width: 810px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-66989" class="wp-image-66989 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212253.359.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="650" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212253.359.jpg 800w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212253.359-300x244.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212253.359-768x624.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FFStuffImage-2024-09-18T212253.359-610x496.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" />Neco Williams v Alex Moreno</div>
<h3></h3>
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FPL tips: Sign or avoid? Nottingham Forest defenders | Squawka

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