Aston Villa sensation Ollie Watkins has been linked to a ‘big six’ side once again as Theo Walcott compares the striker to Thierry Henry.
Villa have been sensational this season. Under the guidance of Unai Emery, the club are on track to qualify for the Champions League as well as lift the Europa Conference League by the end of the campaign.
While Emery is right receiving plenty of the plaudits for these achievements, this could not have been done without Watkins.
The England international has netted 26 times in all competitions this year as well as collecting 10 assists.
This gives him one of the highest goal-contribution rations in the entire top five divisions.
For this success, he has been highly praised throughout the season with many tipping him to win the Premier League Player of the Season award.
However, alongside this comes links away with clubs now beginning to circle ahead of the summer.
Read more: Everything you need to know about Ollie Watkins.
Ollie Watkins is ‘different’
It is clear that Watkins has now become an elite striker. Fans only have to look at his finish last game against Arsenal.
The 28-year-old as calm and composed as ever, gently dinked the ball over David Raya to ensure the Birmingham side came away with the three points.
Former Premier League star Walcott was also watching the match and is a big fan of Watkins. With the ability he currently possesses, Walcott has compared him to legend Henry due to his style of play.
However, he has also suggested that his former club Arsenal now make a move for the striker this summer.
“Well you look at their goals tally right now. They will probably invest in a striker and that player could well have been playing on the opposite side [at the weekend],” he told Premier League Productions.
When asked if he was referencing Watkins, Walcott said: “I am indeed.
“I feel he is the sort of player that Arsenal would look at. What I really like about Ollie Watkins is that, you look at his style and you think he is a winger. He reminds me, and it’s one of the best compliments I am going to give him, but he reminds me of Thierry Henry.
“Against Arsenal, he played out on the left a lot. He wanted to be a forward, but drifted out on the left – he’s such a threat on the counter. He is playing at the top of his game and it would be refreshing to see if he stays at the club.
“There were warning signs [for Arsenal] when he hit the post. I feel like, when he goes through, he is going to score, that’s how confident he is playing right now. I’m pretty sure there will be a lot of teams sniffing around for Ollie Watkins right now. He is very different.”
Links away insulting to Aston Villa
While it is clear that Watkins is having a superb campaign, that does not warrant the sheer amount of links away he has.
Similar to Emery’s situation, neither need to leave to progress their careers. As it stands, both have a great shot of reaching the Champions League and winning the Europa Conference League this season.
Watkins should be on the plane to Germany for the Euros as a seasoned England international, therefore, why does he need to leave?
If he ends up with a Conference League trophy and Champions League qualification, that would be a far better season that Arsenal are likely to achieve.
With Villa continuing to progress on and off the field, this assumption that these players should go to the ‘bigger teams’ needs to end. Most of the time, it rarely pays off for either party with the player or manager leaving with no game time or being underappreciated until they are sacked.
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