Securing Ola Aina for another three years is more than just a routine piece of business. Since arriving at Forest, the former Chelsea academy graduate has quietly become a central figure in Nuno Espirito Santo's side, balancing defensive solidity with forward intent.

To understand how good he is, we delved into his numbers, using percentile rankings, which compare players across the Premier League within their positional group.

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They essentially reveal how a player performs in a specific statistical category relative to their peers: the higher the percentile, the better the player ranks.

His aerials figure stands out immediately, hovering over the 90th percentile. What this metric means is that Aina is among the best in the Premier League when it comes to winning aerial duels, with very few full-backs outperforming him in this regard. This ability to dominate in the air adds an important dimension to Forest's defence.

He is excellent on the ground too, shown by his exceptional ball recovery, where he again ranks in one of the highest percentiles for Premier League full-backs. His ability to regain possession has greatly helped Forest's threat on the counter.

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Aina also ranks well for clearances, featuring in the 75th percentile. This suggests he is adept at removing danger as well as making timely interventions. While shots blocked is not particularly high, it still represents his commitment to defending, a necessity for a team that, even while towards the top of the table, spends a lot of time without the ball.

Finally, Aina's athleticism in driving forward helps relieve pressure and build attacks with greater width, something that will be valuable against more tactically varied European opponents next season.

With continental competition returning to the City Ground for the first time in decades, locking down Aina helps Forest have continuity alongside their ambition. The numbers above suggest he is the kind of full-back essential to success in modern football.