Ollie Watkins to Arsenal: Aston Villa transfer stance, tempting bid readied, player's perspective

Arsenal are expected to return with another offer for Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins but Unai Emery is determined to keep hold of his star striker.

Birmingham World understands the Gunners saw an official bid rejected for Watkins on Monday, with Villa quickly rebuffing the approach. Fabrizio Romano reported on Wednesday that the offer was worth around £60 million, though that figure has been refuted by sources close to Villa.

The stance for Watkins - not for sale unless a huge offer is received - has been clear whenever teams have shown an interest in the past and that hasn’t changed now, with the England international tied down until October 2028 after extending his contract 14 months ago.

Villa’s desire to keep Watkins has been strengthened further as fellow elite striker Jhon Duran has passed a medical today ahead of a stunning €77 million (£64.5m) transfer to Al-Nassr. Duran, who has agreed terms on a five-and-a-half year deal, will join up with Cristiano Ronaldo at the Saudi Pro League club.

Watkins scored his first-ever Champions League goal on Wednesday night as Villa beat Celtic 4-2 to secure a spot in the top eight of the league phase, guaranteeing progression to the last 16. When celebrating, the England international pumped the Villa badge on his shirt and pointed to the ground in what could be seen as a rather telling gesture.

Watkins won’t shy away from Arsenal dream

Despite appearing to reassure Villa fans he wants to stay, Watkins has admitted in the past that his ambition is to join his boyhood club. “That’s the dream, to play for Arsenal one day, but it’s a long shot,” Watkins infamously said in 2020.

Back then, Watkins was still at Brentford and soon to sign for Villa in a deal worth around £31 million including add-ons. It’s been a great success for the striker at Villa Park as he has contributed an impressive 81 goals and 34 assists in 201 games across all competitions.

Having established himself as one of the greatest Premier League attackers over recent years, Watkins’ hopes of joining Arsenal may not be such a ‘long shot’ after all. Villa are likely to stand in the way of such a dream being realised, though a substantial enough bid could still lure him away. It’s highly unlikely, but it’s still possible.

Unai Emery admits no player untouchable

Emery was very open and honest with the media about transfers on Wednesday evening, admitting he can’t guarantee Villa will keep hold of everyone, no matter their level of importance.

“Every player can be in the market in case it’s good for the player, the club and the team but to get this deal of course we are going to be very demanding as well,” Emery said in response to a question about Watkins’ future.

“I don’t want (to sell), it’s good news for interest from other clubs but I want to keep our objective through the players we have in the squad.”

On general exits, Emery added: “Our objective here for us is to keep our structure intelligently because we want to keep the level we are, to keep it for a long time is the most difficult challenge we have. Sometimes we have to sell some players but as well we try to replace them with good players and try to develop them here.”

It has to be stressed that Villa are very against the idea of selling Watkins, but the possibility cannot be 100 per cent ruled out.

In other news, Villa have opened talks to sign a £40 million Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea target.