Aston Villa ace Ollie Watkins on par with Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah as Premier League numbers emerge
Ollie Watkins is slowly but surely becoming one of the best strikers in English football, with the 27-year-old firing Aston Villa towards the European spots.
The forward has now hit double figures for the current Premier League campaign after scoring in Villa’s 2-0 win against Chelsea on Saturday (1 April).
Along with kickstarting the fine victory, the goal keeps Watkins in superb company, with the striker now one of just three players to have reached double figures for goals in the last three Premier League seasons, alongside Tottenham’s Harry Kane and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, according to OptaJoe.
Watkins hit tallies of 14 and 11 in his first two campaigns in the top flight following his move from then-Championship side Brentford in 2020, proving he was absolutely not one of the many players who seemingly cannot deal with the jump up into the Premier League.
With Villa flying high under Emery and given the fact the club have nine matches remaining, the striker is certain to increase his goal tally for this season.
His expected goals rate of 11.06 (Sofascore) is better than the likes of Rashford and Arsenal star Bukayo Saka, with his 72% shot accuracy ahead of the likes of Kane (63%) and Erling Haaland (59%), according to BBC Sport.
Notably, the Villa star could be sitting on a much higher total this season, with only Darwin Nunez (five) hitting the woodwork more times than Watkins (four), according to the official Premier League website.
Watkins has more than earned his place alongside two legendary figures in Kane and Salah, with the Villa man a constant danger despite playing for a club outside of the so-called ‘big six.’
His fine form in front of goal also warranted a spot in Gareth Southgate’s latest England squad, but the manager instead chose Brentford’s Ivan Toney and Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford, two players also having stunning seasons in front of goal.
Skipper Kane meanwhile also unsurprisingly made the squad for last month’s Euro 2024 matches against Italy and Ukraine, with Watkins undoubtedly unfortunate not to make the cut.
After struggling under Steven Gerrard, Villa are rapidly climbing the table with Emery in the dugout, with Watkins undoubtedly capable of firing his club into the European places.
They currently sit ninth in the Premier League table after the win against Chelsea, with very winnable games against struggling Leicester and Nottingham Forest up next.
It’s been a great weekend for Villa already, with their nearest rivals Liverpool losing to Manchester City, while slightly further up the table, Brentford and Brighton played out a 3-3 draw.
In other Aston Villa news, Ty Bracey believes cracks may begin to show among the club’s direct rivals as the fight for European football intensifies.