Aston Villa: Ollie Watkins makes scary Villa Park admission after overtaking Mohamed Salah
Ollie Watkins added two more goals to his ever-growing tally as Aston Villa saw off Luton Town 3-2 on Saturday (2 March).
The prolific striker put the Villans in complete control at half-time, only for Luton to pull one back in a game decided by Lucas Digne’s late header.
It marks the first time Villa have won three straight Premier League games since January 2023 – their first three such games under Unai Emery.
Not since November 2007 have they won three on the spin away from home while netting two or more goals, meanwhile [Opta].
Aston Villa maintain Champions League qualification charge
Every Villa player is contributing right now in this push for Champions League football, but none more so than star man Watkins.
The England international has now been involved in 26 Premier League goals this season – 16 of his own and a further 10 assists.
That is now the outright most of any player in the division, surpassing Liverpool forward Salah’s tally of 24 direct goal involvements.
Watkins’ return of 16 goals is already his most in a single top-flight campaign, beating his previous best of 15 in 2022-23.
As for his ability to set up team-mates, he is in the top six per cent of forwards across Europe’s top five leagues for assists per 90 (0.30) [FBref].
And yet in a scary admission for Premier League defenders, the 28-year-old believes he is only going to get better with time.
“I feel confident and if I miss a chance I am not thinking about it,” Watkins is quoted as saying by Birmingham Live [3 March].
“It is a case of on to the next one. My mentality is to fully focus on the next action and believe in my ability.
“I am established in the Premier League now, right up there with the top goalscorers. I have always had belief.
“I know when I get a chance I can finish it. That is what I am showing. I feel like I can definitely improve, that is the thing.”
Ollie Watkins moves level with Dwight Yorke for Aston Villa
Watkins has a shot conversion rate of 23 per cent this season [FootyStats], while his 0.60 goals per 90 is an improvement on his xG of 0.54.
That is the best return of his career to date, and is an improvement on last season when he actually scored 0.04 fewer goals that expected.
As per FBref, Watkins’ 1.47 shots on target per 90 minutes is also a career best, yet the Englishman feels he is only going to get better and better.
Watkins, who was hailed as “brilliant” by Emery after his latest brace [Bracknell News, 2 March], has netted eight times in as many away games.
With nine away Premier League goals in total this campaign, he is now level with Dwight Yorke (1997-98) for the most ever by a Villa player.
The records will continue tumbling between now and the end of the campaign, but do not be surprised if Watkins does it all over again next season.
In other Aston Villa news, Don Goodman believes the club may already be at an advanced stage in terms of their first summer signing.
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