Chelsea are reportedly set to battle it out with London rivals Arsenal over a possible move for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins.
Mauricio Pochettino has endured a difficult start to life as the Blues boss, winning just one of the first six games in the 2023/24 Premier League campaign. The West London club’s only solitary victory came in a 3-0 win over newbies Luton Town last month, despite spending millions in the past summer transfer window. Pochettino has come under severe pressure from pundits and fans alike, although Chelsea remain confident he is the right man to turn their fortunes around.
According to Football Transfers, Chelsea are plotting a January swoop for Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins as they attempt to solve their goalscoring woes.
Watkins, 27, has been a key figure in Aston Villa’s revival under Unai Emery and has been rejuvenated since the Spaniard succeeded Steven Gerrard in October last year. He scored 15 goals in the Premier League last season as the Villans finished seventh to qualify for the Europa Conference League.
As a result, Emery and Villa are keen to ensure the England international, who scored his season’s first goal and the team’s winner against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last weekend, commits his future by penning a new long-term contract. The report adds that luring Watkins away from Villa Park in the winter transfer window could prove tricky but not entirely impossible for both Chelsea and Arsenal.
Ollie Watkins to Chelsea—Will he solve their goalscoring woes?
Chelsea’s record in the Premier League since the turn of the year has been nothing short of abysmal, given the talents they have recruited in the last three transfer windows. The West Londoners are struggling for goals and have not managed to find the back of the net in their past three Premier League games, with their second last goal in all competitions coming all the way back in August before Nicolas Jackson scored the winner against Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.
Jackson, though, has netted only twice in seven games, while Armando Broja recently returned to the team following a long injury layoff. With Christopher Nkunku sidelined with a serious knee injury, Pochettino’s side are genuinely finding it difficult to score goals and win games. This run of form has already seen the club start planning for the January transfer window, with a striker expected to be on the top of the list of targets.
Ollie Watkins has emerged as a target for Chelsea and it is easy to see why. Over the past three seasons, Watkins has scored 43 goals and registered 13 assists in 116 games, with his contributions helping Unai Emery’s Villa qualify for the Europa Conference League. He may have scored just once in the league this season but overall the Englishman has four goals and two assists in nine games.
At 27, Ollie Watkins is entering the peak years of his career and would be a solid buy for Chelsea. Due to his mix of technical skills and physical qualities, the England international would be a good fit in Pochettino’s system and be an upgrade on young duo Jackson and Broja.
All in all, Chelsea must go all out to sign the Villa star as he could bring the much-needed cutting edge and goals to their attack.
