In a recent interview with Football Insider, Allan Hutton has backed Aston Villa to make a move for Brentford forward Ollie Watkins this summer when he said, “It’s like anything, Brentford aim high and Villa aim low and that’s just how it works – if they did have to go to the £25million, no problem, just get it done.
“I think they would have watched him enough to know that he’s worth that. He’s very young as well so there’s room for him to improve and then possibly sell on if need be.
“I think if they could get him for £18million it would be a snip; it’d be a steal so I don’t see it being a problem if they have to go up to the £25million mark because I definitely think he’s worth it.”
Watkins’ Majestic Season At Griffin Park
The 24-year-old featured in 50 matches for the Bees last season, scoring 26 and creating three goals in multiple competitions which proves just how much he has matured as a striker over the past year. He played an instrumental role behind his team’s incredible run to the EFL Championship playoffs final where they eventually lost to Fulham by a 2-1 scoreline which crushed their dreams of promotion back to the Premier League.
Despite the recent heart-break, Watkins deserves a lot of praise for averaging 2.7 shots, 1.5 key passes and 0.8 dribbles per game in league football last season. However, he was quite untidy when passing the ball after only completing 74.8% of his attempted passes in the English second tier (stats via whoscored).
The Torbay-born marksman has established himself as one of the most prolific goal-getters in the Championship. However, he might struggle to maintain such high standards in the English top-flight where the expectations will grow on him to deliver every week.
What Will The Bees Star Bring To Villa Park?
Watkins can run with the ball at breakneck speed and has got the agility and dribbling ability to cause all sorts of problems for the opposition in the final third. He has gradually transformed himself into an accomplished finisher in front of goal but is yet to prove his worth in top-flight football. The English frontman is about to embark upon the prime years of his playing career, so the best is still to come from him in English football.
A consistent centre-forward like Watkins will undeniably be a shrewd addition to the Villans squad as he ticks all the right boxes in terms of what Dean Smith is looking for in the transfer market. He will add a lot of pace and goals to the Villa attack and could aid their cause of surviving another potential relegation battle next season.
If Smith can manage to keep hold of Grealish and add someone like Watkins to his squad, then he might be able to build a strong team capable of challenging for a top-half finish in the Premier League someday. Either way, Watkins is a striker to keep an eye out for in the future and would serve as a great option for the West Midlands outfit to consider ahead of the new campaign.
