Aston Villa’s ollie Watkins Playing Through Long-Term Knee Pain, Confirms Unai Emery
Birmingham, UK – November 28, 2023 – Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins has been battling ongoing knee pain for over a year, but will not require surgery, manager Unai Emery revealed Tuesday. The news comes amidst a recent dip in form for the england international, who has struggled to find the back of the net consistently.
Watkins has scored one goal in 19 appearances across all competitions this season, and just two goals in his previous 24 games dating back further. He was notably dropped from the starting lineup for Sunday’s 1-0 win against Wolves, with Donyell Malen taking his place - a first Premier League omission for Watkins this term.
The forward was also left out of Gareth Southgate’s England squad for November’s international fixtures, with national team coach Thomas Tuchel citing Watkins’ discomfort as a factor.
Addressing the situation ahead of Wednesday’s match against Brighton & Hove Albion, Emery acknowledged the impact of the knee issue, which first surfaced at the start of last season in August.
“He’s keeping a small pain in his knee (from) last year when we started the season in August,” Emery explained. “He was feeling more or less the same pain he’s feeling now. (Back then) we needed Jhon Duran as a second striker. He scored goals and helped the team.”
Emery clarified that the club is focused on managing the pain rather than pursuing surgical intervention. “Now he (Watkins) is feeling the same pain. He’s not feeling the 100 per cent – we are trying to manage it with him. We are trying to get him completely without pain – and through this, to feel better again, and having the confidence to score goals.”
The Villa manager detailed the steps being taken to support Watkins, including tailored training regimes. “We want him to get the best fitness, with no pain and playing consistently. For example, yesterday he did not train.We kept him inside, only with the physios, but he will be available for tomorrow.We are trying to get some moments of rest for him. He won’t have surgery. For this pain he needs rest.”
Despite Watkins’ struggles, Emery remains steadfast in his support. The Athletic recently reported that Villa staff anticipate a notable goalscoring burden to fall on Watkins and Morgan Rogers, especially given the challenges faced during the summer transfer window.
“He can play,” Emery affirmed. “hopefully he can feel 100 per cent well and only focus on his play and not on his pain. Ollie Watkins has my confidence. Completely my confidence. He is always doing his task,maybe he’s under his normal confidence because he is not scoring,but he is never giving up,always doing his task.The goals are coming.”
Villa will look to extend their winning streak to six games when they face Brighton on Wednesday.
