Aston Villa manager, Unai Emery has opened up about Ollie Watkins and his importance following his two assists vs Burnley.
It has been a great year for Aston Villa which currently sees them sitting in second place in the Premier League, at the time of writing.
Since Unai Emery was hired, the rise of the club has been meteoric. Last season Europa Conference League was secured and now Champions League football looks possible. There is talk of the title, not that Leon Bailey was thinking of that post-Burnley.
The improvement of some players has been clear for all to see. From John McGinn to Douglas Luiz, rival fans and pundits are sitting up and taking notice.
One of those is Ollie Watkins who has become one of the most consistent strikers in the league. This now sees him as an England regular and top assister in the Premier League, according to FotMob.
What has Unai Emery said about Ollie Watkins?
The Englishman finishes 2023 with nine goals and eight assists so far this season which leaves him behind only Erling Haaland for goal involvements.
With that being said, his importance to the Villa squad is clear for all to see. Without his goal involvements, the Villans could be in a completely different position.
Thanks to his two assists for Bailey and Moussa Diaby, plus a penalty from Luiz, Villa scraped past 10-man Burnley. Following the victory, Emery discussed his striker with Gary Lineker on Match of the Day.
On that, he said: “He’s amazing. Even when he isn’t scoring and even when he isn’t doing assists he is always doing his work and he is a very good example for everybody. At the end we need his goals, we need his assists and today he did a fantastic game. As well doing great runs in behind like in the first half he did four or six times, breaking their defence.”
The man signed from Brentford is able to play in different ways to benefit his side depending on the opponents. The Clarets came to Villa Park as they looked to frustrate the home side, this saw Watkins get in behind their defence. With Diego Carlos playing five long balls looking for the striker, it was a clear game plan.
He may be frustrated to have not scored. To currently be top of the assist chart is a testament to the work he does.
