Gary Lineker shocked by Ollie Watkins development at Aston Villa
Gary Lineker was left surprised after learning about a development regarding Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins.
Watkins has been one of the best players at Aston Villa in the last few seasons. His lethal goalscoring has been one of the biggest reasons for Villa’s push for European football and their consistent results under Unai Emery.
The former Brentford striker has been lighting up Villa Park with his performances, netting 13 goals in 29 Premier League appearances.
Despite his exploits with Villa, the 29-year-old forward was left out of the England squad by Thomas Tuchel for the FIFA World Cup qualifiers in March, which came as a shock to Lineker.
Watkins not selected by Tuchel
Tuchel took charge of the England national team in January 2025, with his first game as England manager coming against Albania on Friday (21 March). England cruised to a 2-0 victory and will now face Latvia on Monday.
When the squad was released for Tuchel’s first couple of games as England boss earlier this month, there was a notable absentee in Watkins. The Aston Villa striker is a valuable backup to Harry Kane and has proved that in the past.
In 18 appearances for the Three Lions, Watkins has scored five goals. Instead of Watkins, Dominic Solanke got the nod in the national team.
| Opposition | Home/Away |
| Preston | Away |
| Brighton | Away |
| Nottingham Forest | Home |
| PSG | Away |
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast [21 March], pundit Lineker expressed his shock at the omission.
He said: “I was very surprised that Watkins wasn’t in the squad. I don’t know whether there’s any reason for it…?”
There have been reports that the 29-year-old striker has been nursing an injury and possibly because of that, Tuchel decided to leave Watkins out of the England squad.
That is the only plausible reason for choosing Solanke over Watkins as the Tottenham man has struggled in front of the goal this season.
Ollie Watkins key to Aston Villa’s progress in all competitions
The Englishman has been Villa’s talisman. With Emery’s side still active in the UEFA Champions League, FA Cup and Premier League, Watkins’ form is vital to Villa’s chances.
Villa are chasing European football for next season and sit ninth in the Premier League table, four points off the top four.
They are set to face PSG in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and also face Championship side Preston North End in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
If Watkins’ injury heals soon and he can return to his best self, Villa will have a huge advantage in the business end of the season in all competitions.