Dion Dublin wowed by Ollie Watkins as Aston Villa star hailed on Match of the Day despite loss
Dion Dublin has offered constructive criticism and praise to Ollie Watkins following his performance for Aston Villa v Brentford, on told Match of the Day.
Despite scoring two goals against his former side, the striker was only able to inspire his side to a draw at Villa Park on 6 April.
The Villans threw away a two-goal lead as the Bees scored three goals in nine minutes but couldn’t hold on to their lead.
Speaking on Match of the Day, Dublin had some aspects of his game that Watkins could improve on moving forward.
He said: “He’s on fire at the moment. I’m nitpicking because I want him to be better and there’s little things like the hold-up play, the awareness of where he’s got to be. Hold on to the ball, it’s too easy him getting shoved off.”
Despite having some issues with his game, there was some praise for the former Villa striker to offer to the current.
Continuing, he added: “Then he picked up in the second half. He put in the hard yards, he did do the simple things, hold it up, lay it off, get in the box and then you see a different Ollie Watkins. The manager’s actually telling him to do less running, stay in the middle of the goal and you’ll get your goals. He did it all game in the end.”
Should Ollie Watkins win Player of the Year for Aston Villa?
It has been a stellar season for the England international who has the most goal involvements in the Premier League.
He has already accumulated 28 goals and assists, according to FotMob, which has seen him smash a club record with six games remaining.
Watkins has scored or assisted every 96 minutes in the Premier League which is a truly amazing return for the Villa man.
He has more goal involvements than world-class attacking talents like Mohamed Salah, Erling Haaland and Heung-Min Son in the league.
According to Fbref, he ranks highly amongst the best strikers in Europe’s top five leagues for many key stats. These include non-penalty goals, assists and touches in the opposition box which he ranks in the top 74% or higher.
With all that being said, there is very little clamour to suggest Watkins should win Premier League Player of the Season.
Given his excellent level of performance and output for a side that is looking up the league, he has been nothing short of superb.
Although the likes of Phil Foden, Rodri and Declan Rice are likely to be in the voting, the Villa man certainly deserves a shout.
In other Aston Villa news, an admission has been shared after a £900million Premier League development.
For more Aston Villa news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.