Following on from his brilliant end to last season, Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins impressed through pre-season this summer and is ready to continue to lead the line effectively for Unai Emery.
Like many of his teammates, the 27-year-old struggled in the early part of the last campaign as he wasn’t necessarily utilised in the best way to maximise his strengths.
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That was reflected in his tallies of just two goals and two assists in 13 Premier League games prior to Emery’s arrival in November, and while there was an immediate improvement from him as he bagged a goal and two assists in his first three outings under the Spaniard, it wasn’t until the departure of Danny Ings in January that he really flourished.
With the responsibility and pressure of being our leading striker and not facing that constant debate of whether or not he and Ings could co-exist or who should start when, it was Watkins who was installed as our talisman up top by Emery and it was a decision that delivered significant rewards.
The England international ultimately ended up scoring 13 goals and providing four assists in 24 league games under Emery in total, and he finally established himself as a consistent source of goals for us.
Additionally, other aspects of his game also significantly improved. Whether it was his hold-up play or his ability to link our attacks together with his touch, movement and passing, combined with his tireless work ethic and defensive contribution for the team by pressing from the front, he became a more complete player.
Four goals in six pre-season friendlies this summer showed that he’s ready to build on last year and continue to improve, as Watkins undoubtedly appears to be relishing the opportunity to learn and adapt under his current boss, and it is producing superb results on the pitch.
With the additions of Youri Tielemans and Moussa Diaby this summer, he will hopefully have more quality and creativity around him to be increasingly impactful in the final third, while there was another big decision from Emery that has set the stage for Watkins to raise his level once again.
Instead of adding another striker to the squad to provide direct competition for that starting berth to lead the Villa attack, the Spanish tactician has put his faith in both Cameron Archer and Jhon Duran to back Watkins up instead.
The young duo will hopefully add different characteristics and threats to lessen the burden on Watkins and offer alternatives when needed in certain situations, but what they don’t do is disrupt the balance and understanding that has been built in this Villa starting XI with our top goalscorer leading the way.
Time will tell how many goals and assists Watkins can rack up this season, but if there is one off-the-pitch matter that hopefully gets taken care of sooner rather than later, it’s that he’s one of the few fundamental players in Emery’s squad who will see his contract expire in 2025.
With a number of key individuals having put pen to paper on extensions in recent times, it’s certainly hoped that Watkins is next in line.
2022/23: 16 goals, 6 assists 🔥
2023/24: ❓ pic.twitter.com/Iul8n5oPTM— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) August 7, 2023