Why Watkins' movement is secret weapon, how Gomez snubbed Man City for Liverpool
Thierry Henry gave a fascinating analysis of Ollie Watkins' goals in Aston Villa's win over Luton on Monday Night Football. The first, a towering header from a corner, was "Didier Drogba-like". The second? Even better. "There is nobody who can stop that," he said.
With 16 goals for the season in the Premier League, Watkins has surpassed his total for the whole of last term with two months to spare. But it is not just a case of sharpened finishing.
Defender Pau Torres was eager to get that message across when asked what has impressed him most about Watkins during a recent interview at Aston Villa's Bodymoor Heath headquarters.
"I think he is a player who is constantly improving," Torres said to Sky Sports. "First of all, he makes very good runs which make it easier for the players whose job it is to find him."
Watkins has emerged as a creator as well as a scorer. He has 10 assists in addition to his goals. But it was telling that Torres started by highlighting the quality of his movement.
It is his biggest strength.
His second goal against Luton, when he timed his run perfectly to latch onto Douglas Luiz's free-kick, was one of nine this season - more than half his Premier League total - which has come as a result of his movement putting him one-on-one with the goalkeeper.
The runs which lead to goals are the ones that stick in the memory. But Watkins makes dozens like them in every game. According to data from Second Spectrum, he ranks top among all Premier League players this season for both high-speed runs and attacking runs.
Drilling down further into the numbers tells us more. Remarkably, Watkins' total of 444 runs challenging the opposition's backline is more than 30 per cent higher than any other player's. The 28-year-old
Read on m.allfootballapp.com
