Ally McCoist hails ‘top class’ Ollie Watkins as 100% Aston Villa star shines with display v Everton
Ally McCoist was full of praise for Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins for his performance against Everton at Goodison Park on 14 January despite the eventual 0-0 scoreline.
The legendary former Rangers striker dubbed Watkins as “top class” amid praise for the way he dealt with the physical battle with Everton’s James Tarkowski.
McCoist was joined by Jeff Stelling as the pair discussed the best Premier League strikers, naming Aston Villa’s main man among them as they gushed over his performance at Goodison Park.
Speaking live on talkSPORT [15 January, 07:36], McCoist shared: “What he did exceptionally well, Jeff, was: he led the line like a proper number nine. He took it in, he won free kicks, he held the ball up well, he linked up play. Yes, top class. He is a very, very good number nine.”
It has now been five games without a goal for Watkins, but that hasn’t stopped the floods of praise for his performances, as he has contributed plenty more to Villa’s game this season than just finding the back of the net.
He has shown maturity in his game after being tasked with leading the line for Unai Emery, and against Everton that stood out despite the final score.
Watkins competed in 14 duels in the game, 7 on the ground and 7 in the air, which outweighed the number of passes he completed (13) in a display of the type of contest he faced. [Sofascore]
The striker also managed to fire six shots at Jordan Pickford’s goal, with two blocked, three off target and one testing the keeper, while completing two of his three attempted dribbles, making a key pass and recording a 100 per cent accuracy with long balls in an all-round dominant display.
Battling with a physical defender like Tarkowski can often prove difficult for a striker of Watkins’ mould, but he proved he can mix his game up by dropping deeper and dealing with the battle.
While he failed to find the back of the net again, this was one of the more standout performances in his catalogue this season, and one Emery will no doubt be proud of, with the striker showing everything you need in a proper Premier League number nine.
It is unexpected to be praising a number nine so heavily in a goalless draw, but he deserves it.
In other Aston Villa news, there is cause for concern after Jacob Ramsey suffered another injury blow.