Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has dismissed concern over Ollie Watkins and Jacob Ramsey’s fitness, but did urge caution following a hectic schedule.
After our 3-0 win over Newcastle Utd on Saturday, it completed a run of four Premier League games in just 15 days, and while we’ve been relatively fortunate in that we’ve been able to field a consistent side throughout that period, it naturally could take its toll on certain individuals.
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Emery was directly asked about Watkins after the game as to whether he had suffered a knock, as with both the in-form Villa striker and Ramsey being withdrawn in the latter stages of the victory, there was seemingly some concern in the media room that perhaps they might have picked up a knock.
While the Spanish tactician dismissed talk of a setback, he did reveal he is being cautious with their fitness as Watkins was suffering with an issue during the week, while he conceded that Ramsey was tired towards the end of our latest win.
“He [Watkins] has suffered for two days and missed a session this week but in the end he was good,” Emery said in his post-match press conference, as per BirminghamLive. “We have to be careful with some players like Jacob Ramsey for example. He was tired and he worked a lot in this match. He’s important as well and we need to be careful.”
With a week’s break until we face Brentford, it’s hoped that gives everyone in the squad a chance to rest and recover, and hopefully they’ll all be feeling fresh and fully fit for another important game in our pursuit of European qualification.
Further, with the likes of Boubacar Kamara, Matty Cash, Philippe Coutinho and Leon Bailey missing out in recent weeks, it will be a huge boost for Emery to have them back sooner rather than later to give us depth and competition, as well as different options that could be more effective against certain opposition.
Brentford will be another difficult assignment for us, and especially with both Watkins and Ramsey being in superb form in our impressive winning run over the past two months, it’s hoped that they’re available to start and can continue their crucial influence on our results.
