In Focus: Why Fulham are aiming to keep Aina

Fulham may be struggling to secure their Premier League safety but Ola Aina has looked right at home in the top flight. 

Although the utility man, 24, arrived on loan at Craven Cottage to little fanfare last summer, he has become a key cog in Scott Parker’s defence this season. 

We turn the spotlight on why the Torino ace, who began his senior career at Chelsea, has excelled for Parker's strugglers and examine what the future holds for him. 

Adaptability

When Fulham signed Aina and Lyon right-back Kenny Tete within a day of each other last September, the expectation was the former Chelsea man would provide back-up to his Dutch counterpart. 

But Tete’s injury issues and Aina’s versatility have seen him start 29 of their 33 Premier League matches to date. 

While primarily a right-back, Aina has started eight league games in central defence this term and a further seven at left-back. 

With Parker regularly switching between a back three and a back four, he has proven to be a remarkably useful asset to his manager. 

Doing the simple things well

Fulham’s No34 is not the kind of attacking full-back who will constantly skin his marker and drive play downfield. 

An efficient distributor of the ball, he typically collects passes from centre-back Joachim Andersen and brings Fulham's more attacking assets, such as Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Bobby Decordova-Reid, into play. 

However, it is out of possession where Aina’s strength really lies. 

He is adept at intercepting passes (managing 1.5 interceptions per 90 minutes) and is inside the Premier League’s top 40 players for possessions won in the defensive third (3.61 per 90). 

A formidable unit

Perhaps the best reflection of Aina’s defensive abilities is Fulham’s record at the back in 2020-21. 

Parker’s side had to contend with a dramatically shortened pre-season after promotion via the Championship play-offs and were not able to complete their squad building until late in the summer transfer window. 

So it seems fair to judge Fulham's defence on the matches that followed the arrival of centre-backs Tosin Adarabioyo and Andersen from Manchester City and Lyon respectively. 

Andersen, 24, was the latter of those signings and made his debut against West Brom in early November. Since then, Fulham have conceded just 1.07 goals per 90 (the seventh-best record in the Premier League) and have kept nine clean sheets. 

Constantly improving

Parker was full of praise for Aina when discussing the defender earlier this year. 

He said: "His concentration has improved and we wanted him to brush up on his detail in his work — the care in his body shape and the care in his passing. 

"He came to us from Italy and when he first came in he probably struggled a little bit with the intensity of the training and what was asked of him. 

"But we knew his quality from being a young player at Chelsea and I think everyone is seeing that now. 

"He’s very open-minded and willing to listen — and we’re seeing the rewards of that."

The future

Fulham are believed to have inserted a clause in Aina’s loan from Torino, allowing them to sign the 17-cap Nigeria international for a reported £11million. 

That would represent a relative bargain and the Cottagers will be keen to make the deal permanent. 

The question is whether Aina will want to stay with Fulham if they are relegated to the Championship, especially if his versatility is desirable to other Premier League outfits. 

But with the full-back enjoying his football and starting regularly in West London, it would not be a surprise to see him extend his stay at Craven Cottage.