Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins could have helped boyhood club Arsenal in their Premier League title race against Liverpool. The 29-year-old was subjected to significant transfer interest from the Gunners in January but he ultimately remained at Villa Park.
Jhon Duran was instead the forward that moved on as he joined Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr for a sizeable fee. Marcos Asensio and Marcus Rashford joining Villa on loan in the final days of the winter window offered Arsenal some Watkins hope, but the decision had seemingly already been made.
As football.london reported in the wake of the window closing, an offer worth £40million with add-ons was on the table before talks for Duran had advanced. It is also understood that Villa had actually initiated talks, perhaps sensing an opportunity to get a good fee with a ready-made replacement already at the club.
Despite not signing for the club he supports, Watkins has still seemingly found a way to impact their pursuit of the title. On Wednesday evening, league leaders Liverpool made the trip to Villa Park for a clash brought forward from mid-March because of the Reds being in the Carabao Cup final.
Mohamed Salah netted the opening goal just before the half hour mark, but Youri Tielemans struck back under 10 minutes later. Proceedings looked set to be level for the interval, but Watkins netted an impressive header to put Villa in front.
Trent Alexander-Arnold bagged the equaliser in the second 45 but neither team was able to score a winner in the final 30 minutes. As a result, Watkins’ goal led to Liverpool dropping two points in the title race at a ground where Arsenal won.
Following the game, the England international has sent a message on social media. Posting to Instagram, he simply captioned the photo of him celebrating with a salute emoji.
Though many will feel Watkins has done Arsenal a favour, it is worth remembering his goal prevented a win against Villa just a few weeks ago and therefore this strike against Liverpool just cancels out the points dropped. The Gunners will now be hoping for a favour from Man City as they face the Reds this weekend at Etihad Stadium.
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