View: Ollie Watkins must rediscover clinical edge at Aston Villa to become the complete striker
Just one piece of the Ollie Watkins puzzle remains to be found so he can become the complete centre-forward at Aston Villa.
He’s got the pace, the work rate, and the physicality to match, but the Englishman has become alarmingly wasteful in front of goal in recent times.
This final, but an imperative segment of the puzzle could transform Watkins from a figure on the periphery of the England international setup into one of the most feared attackers in the Premier League.
So far this season the 26-year-old has found goals hard to come by, netting just twice from 14 appearances in the league – a major decline on his 14 scored in 2020/21 and his 11 goals scored last season.
And on Thursday evening (15 December) Watkins struggled once again as Villa hosted Unai Emery’s former employers Villarreal in a mid-season friendly.
The home side came off second best to the Spanish outfit, with Etienne Capoue’s strike thirteen minutes from time the only goal of the evening.
The Villa striker’s woes in front of goal were typified in this performance. It simply didn’t happen for Ollie, despite his best efforts, with his one moment of calm where he thought he had scored being chalked off for offside.
Partnering Leon Bailey for the first hour – as has become custom under Emery since his arrival – the Englishman looked devoid of confidence and struggled to make a sizeable impact in the final third.
His one significant opportunity of the night came as Watkins cut inside the box and spooned his shot high into the stands of Villa Park.
Now, this isn’t a dig at Watkins, far from it, as the forward has the potential to lead the Claret and Blue for many years to come – and fits Emery’s blueprint to a T.
The Spaniard wants forwards who are willing to do the hard yards. Press high, and run the channels without complaint, as this can be a rather laborious, unrewarding task from time to time.
But this is the business that Watkins thrives in. All Emery needs to do is instil some calm in the striker in front of goal, something that he should be able to learn from teammate Danny Ings, who has forged his reputation on this natural clinical edge.
Whether Villa can find this well-hidden final piece of the jigsaw is yet to be known, but if Watkins’ struggles continue in front of goal then they have a marksman in Ings who surely won’t miss.
In other Aston Villa news, this alarming stat shows that Tyrone Mings must go back to the basics under Unai Emery.