‘I’m not happy’ - Ollie Watkins developing concerns amid major Aston Villa setback

Ollie Watkins has admitted he’s unhappy with the regularity of his starts at Aston Villa but recognises the quality of competition is higher than ever.

The England international scored in Villa’s 3-0 Premier League victory away at Southampton on Saturday but only played 24 minutes off the bench, following on from a mere 11-minute cameo away at Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League three days earlier.

Watkins being named on the bench has become rather a running theme since mid-March as he has started just two of Villa’s last six fixtures, accumulating only 176 minutes in that time. Having been one of the first names on the team sheet earlier in the campaign, the sudden reduction in game time has arrived as quite a shock.

Marcus Rashford was originally signed on loan from Manchester United with the view to play on the left wing but Unai Emery has since suggested he prefers the 27-year-old as a centre-forward. Rashford scored twice in that position away at Preston North End in the FA Cup quarter-finals and followed up with another goal away at Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League. This sharp form has left Watkins stranded.

“For me, I’m not happy to sit on the bench. It's disappointing every game that I am on the bench but it is the manager’s decision at the end of the day,” Watkins said after the win at Southampton.

“The timing of the goal, coming off the bench, not being in the starting line-up. Disappointed to not play, [but] when you put all that into consideration, I’m happy to score.”

Watkins assesses competition at Aston Villa

Not only does Watkins have to compete with Rashford, but fellow winter signing Donyell Malen has scored in three successive matches and is gunning for a starting spot. Then there’s Morgan Rogers, who has played either as a right winger or as a second striker when Marco Asensio has been occupying the number 10 role.

Villa, now up to seventh in the Premier League and just two points off fifth-placed Manchester City, are certainly benefiting from the bolstered squad depth. Watkins has been a victim of his teammates’ success, though, and he must fight hard to regain his place at the forefront of Emery’s plans.

"I think this is definitely, probably the best Villa squad there is in terms of depth and quality, so it’s a bit of a headache for the manager,” Watkins added. “With a fully-fit squad, Ross Barkley, an unbelievable player, missing out. So, it shows the depth that we have got.

“All you can do when you come on the pitch is to try to make an impact and then go from there. We all did that today. Three different goal scorers all coming off the bench. It’s positive that we have got the squad that we can do that.

“They [Southampton] made it really difficult for us. We knew it was always going to be tough coming here. Got a lot of bodies behind the ball. You have to be patient. We knew that once we got one chance we would punish them. The goals started flowing after that.”