Aston Villa transfer advice issued after what’s happened with Ollie Watkins
Aston Villa have a situation regarding Ollie Watkins and the January transfer window.
Watkins netted two for Villa against Brighton at the start of December, and there were hopes that it would kickstart his goalscoring revival at Villa Park.
The England international made a telling impact on the south coast as Villa went on to secure a 4-3 win over Brighton.
That didn’t have the desired effect as Watkins continued to struggle against Manchester United with little signs of a goal coming in B6.
Questions have been raised with the winter market opening within days, with advice now given out to Unai Emery and Co. about Watkins.
Aston Villa warned against replacing Ollie Watkins
Watkins broke Gabby Agbonlahor’s Premier League record last season with a deft finish against Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.
There has been very little positivity to speak of since then, with the 29-year-old having scored three Premier League goals at this stage.
This has prompted many supporters to call for a potential replacement signing in January, in the hope of bringing in a regular goalscorer for the second half of the campaign.
Former Villa scout Bryan King has warned the claret and blue outfit against bringing in a striker due to the risk of disrupting the high-flying squad.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, King said: “I don’t think a striker will be signed in January.
“Watkins will start scoring goals at some stage, as all centre-forwards seem to do. They have a bad period, and they only need one, then stuff starts to happen for them.
“I think Villa have got enough flair and decent players in their side already.
“Everybody’s confidence must be sky high after beating Manchester United with such a great atmosphere.
“They may need to bring in one or two players, but they don’t want to disrupt what they’ve got. You’ve got to bring in the right new face, and he’s got to be of top quality.“
Watkins must finally perform or risk summer exit
There is no getting away from the fact that Watkins has been poor this season, but he does have plenty of credit in the bank.
That won’t last forever, especially if his lack of goals continues deeper into the Premier League season.
The B6 club may not bring in a new forward in January, but there will certainly be questions asked the longer this barren run goes on.
If Watkins can’t find the net regularly across the rest of the season, the summer could represent the end of the road for Villa’s number 11.
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