Aston Villa: 0% Ollie Watkins must prove Troy Deeney wrong after ‘not convinced’ England claim
Ollie Watkins must step up his performances for both Aston Villa and England after Troy Deeney insisted he is still not convinced by him.
The former Birmingham City striker compared Watkins to Ivan Toney as he revealed he thinks Toney has a better all-round game compared to the Villa man as he said Watkins is a “winger trying to be a striker”.
This has come following a disappointing performance under Gareth Southgate against Brazil, while he was afforded just ten minutes to impress in the clash with Belgium.
Speaking live on talkSPORT [27 March, 10:54], Deeney ranted: “Toney holds the ball up better and he’s still got enough athleticism to cause problems running deep and his link-up play is excellent.
“I think Ollie [Watkins], this is going to sound negative but I promise you it’s not, he’s having a fantastic season, but he’s a winger trying to be a striker. That’s just who he is.
“He’s very good at being a striker, but whenever Toney steps up, when he took that penalty last night did you ever think he was going to miss?
“Watkins runs through 1v1 for Villa in many games this season, but I’m still not convinced he’s going to score. I think he’ll score eventually. If you give him three or four shots per game, he’ll score.”
Ollie Watkins must step up after disappointing England displays
Rob Green was also disappointed by the striker’s displays on international duty as he insisted Watkins will have to start taking his chances if he wants to remain in with a shout.
In the 1-0 defeat to Brazil at Wembley in which Watkins played 90 minutes, he picked up one key pass, but missed one big chance with his only shot of the game and failed to make a difference to the team going forward. [Sofascore]
On top of that, he failed to hit the target with a single one of his attempted crosses and didn’t win any of the three ground duels he competed in, losing possession nine times and giving away one foul.
Then, coming off the bench late in the 2-2 draw with Belgium at Wembley, Watkins touched the ball just five times, with a zero per cent dribble completion rate and failing to complete a single ground duel yet again. However, it was his good work that led to Jude Bellingham’s equaliser.
If Watkins continues to show how good he can be for Aston Villa, he should remain in with a strong shout of making the England squad, perhaps even alongside Toney, but his lacklustre performances under Southgate will have done him no favours.
In other Aston Villa news, Leander Dendoncker is facing a nightmare situation at Napoli.
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