Nottingham Forest have battled defensively all season in 2023/24, although they have two defenders who perform a good job: Willy Boly and Murillo.
Some statistics from The Other 14 have surfaced this week, with the two players ranking first and third on a list of statistics.
So, what do Boly and Murillo do exceptionally well defensively when playing for Forest? Let’s look more closely.
Two Nottingham Forest defenders sit at top three in Premier League rankings
For Murillo, it’s been quite a ride during the 2023/24 campaign and he’s been ever-present in the Premier League since making his debut in October.
Boly has been a bit of an odd one again, and he’s frequently battled injury issues, despite making 16 appearances in all competitions.
The two are now ranked first and third among Premier League defenders in terms of blocks and clearances per 90 minutes.
Boly leads with 7.12 per game, making 14 blocks and 65 clearances in 999 minutes on the field.
Murillo is third with 6.88 per game, with the Brazilian recording 18 blocks and 128 clearances in 1909 minutes on the field.
These statistics from The Other 14 on X are somewhat shocking, especially given how soft Forest has been defensively at times.
Individual blunders cost Forest dearly.
This merely goes to prove that Forest does have the players, but far too many individual blunders have cost the club points.
Forest must return to the grind of scoring points, and it may be time to reunite Boly and Murillo.
Boly has not started a game since being sent off against Bournemouth, and his aerial presence has been greatly missed.
Kelvin Wilson remarked yesterday that Boly should play for Forest on Saturday, and we think that’s a fantastic idea.
The Reds cannot afford to lose to Luton on Saturday. Hopefully, some of the defensive resolution demonstrated in these numbers will be evident over the weekend.
