Aston Villa suffered a 2-1 defeat over Arsenal on Wednesday night and Ollie Watkins was one of many players who underperformed. The 26-year-old led the line on his own as Danny Ings was dropped following a poor performance in Villa’s last game, but Watkins failed to make an impact at the Emirates Stadium.
Watkins didn’t see a lot of the ball and didn’t do a lot with the limited possession, so he was easy pickings for Arsenal’s defenders. Chris Deeley of 90min gave the England international a player rating of 4/10 and said he suffered from a ‘lack of service’ while being stifled by the Gunners’ centre-backs.
Against Arsenal, Watkins played for 90 minutes, had 26 touches, failed to win an aerial duel, completed 88.2% of his 17 passes, failed to create a chance, made one tackle, failed to whip in a cross, had two clearances, failed to register a shot on target, won two freekicks and failed to make a dribble.
The 26-year-old has made six appearances in all competitions, scoring one goal with two assists. Villa have lost four of their five Premier League games this season which coincides with the games Watkins has failed to score in. He’ll need to bounce back against Manchester City on Saturday.
In other news, here’s why Steven Gerrard is unlikely to drop John McGinn despite his poor form
