Ollie Watkins

[chrisw1]

I wouldn't write off Watkins, I like him and hope he's with us for a while.  But his finishing is abysmal.  We're missing chances top teams would take and it's making a huge difference.

Hopefully it will click again for him with the new formation, but if he doesn't do anything in the next couple of games then I'd put him on the bench for a spell to see what Ings can do.

[Hookeysmith]

I wouldn't write off Watkins, I like him and hope he's with us for a while.  But his finishing is abysmal.  We're missing chances top teams would take and it's making a huge difference.

Hopefully it will click again for him with the new formation, but if he doesn't do anything in the next couple of games then I'd put him on the bench for a spell to see what Ings can do.

Totally agree with this

[Risso]

I wouldn't write off Watkins, I like him and hope he's with us for a while.  But his finishing is abysmal.

Bit of a problem for top level strikers, that.

[German James]

I feel sorry for Watkins and Ings. Ollie isn't as good as we thought he was (yet?) and clearly misses Joe. Or rather, the team as it was with Joe in it. His finishing simply isn't good enough for the vital role he's playing. Can't fault his workrate otherwise.
As for Ings, he's a proven striker who probably thought he was making a step-up in his career. I doubt he thinks that any more, but I don't think it's all his fault. He's not getting the sort of service he needs and it doesn't look like Gerrard has any interest in building a team to supply him with it.

[pauliewalnuts]

I wouldn't write off Watkins, I like him and hope he's with us for a while.  But his finishing is abysmal.

Bit of a problem for top level strikers, that.

I was going to say the same - not having a go at chrisw here - plenty of people saying he's really good but his finishing is terrible. Surely that's a dealbreaker?

"I've got a really fast car but the brakes don't work"

[Risso]

I feel sorry for Watkins and Ings. Ollie isn't as good as we thought he was (yet?) and clearly misses Joe. Or rather, the team as it was with Joe in it. His finishing simply isn't good enough for the vital role he's playing. Can't fault his workrate otherwise.
As for Ings, he's a proven striker who probably thought he was making a step-up in his career. I doubt he thinks that any more, but I don't think it's all his fault. He's not getting the sort of service he needs and it doesn't look like Gerrard has any interest in building a team to supply him with it.

My impression of Southampton is that for the last couple of seasons, the team was built around Ward-Prowse feeding Ings, a bit like us with everything going through Grealish.

[WarszaVillan]

He reminds me of Dean Saunders. Different kind of player I know, but a striker that is almost top drawer but is let down by his finishing. He needs to get on a run again like last season.

[olaftab]

Watkins has scored the same number of League goals as Lukaku, Greenwood and Kane  so far this season.

[Chris Smith]

I wouldn't write off Watkins, I like him and hope he's with us for a while.  But his finishing is abysmal.

Bit of a problem for top level strikers, that.

Calling his finishing abysmal is way over the top. He’s scored 21 in 55 appearances for us which works out at 1 every 2.6 games.

[Risso]

Watkins has scored the same number of League goals as Lukaku, Greenwood and Kane  so far this season.

So what?

Lukaka has only started 11 games. Kane was sulking about not being sold and hardly broke a sweat for the first half a dozen games at least. Other players not doing as well as expected doesn't really say anything about Watkins does it?

[German James]

I feel sorry for Watkins and Ings. Ollie isn't as good as we thought he was (yet?) and clearly misses Joe. Or rather, the team as it was with Joe in it. His finishing simply isn't good enough for the vital role he's playing. Can't fault his workrate otherwise.
As for Ings, he's a proven striker who probably thought he was making a step-up in his career. I doubt he thinks that any more, but I don't think it's all his fault. He's not getting the sort of service he needs and it doesn't look like Gerrard has any interest in building a team to supply him with it.

My impression of Southampton is that for the last couple of seasons, the team was built around Ward-Prowse feeding Ings, a bit like us with everything going through Grealish.

That's my feeling too.

[Abbeyfealeavfc]

Ollie's goal ratio for Villa is on a par with that at other clubs he's been at (approx 1 in 3).
He offers so much more than his goals. He works tirelessly for the team with bundles of energy. Opposition defenders must be kn-ckered at the end of games playing against him. Our midfielders are scoring recently because of his presence. As we're a relatively small team his height is advantageous when defending set pieces. How many times did he defend the front post successfully against Everton's pub team?
He's a star player with a star attitude who I'd rather was in our team than against us. Keep plugging away Ollie and the goals will come.

[Smithy]

I know lots of people don't like stats, and insist they can be misleading, but Ollie's shots-to-goals conversion rate this season is 12.8%.  Last season it was 14.4%.  Ings is at 19% this season. 

For comparison, Jamie Vardy is on 25%, Firminio 26%, Salah 20% and England captain Harry Kane is at 8%.

Across a season, most top strikers are well into the teens, and the season's top performers can be well into the 20s.

And before anyone reads TOO much into these numbers, here's a stat for you.  Last season Keinan Davis had a better shots-to-goals ratio than Mason Greenwood.

[OCD]

Messing around with the formation and trying to make it with 2 upfront really hasn't helped him this season. If we keep the set-up as we had it on Saturday I think we'll start to see the best of him.

[LeeB]

Ollie's goal ratio for Villa is on a par with that at other clubs he's been at (approx 1 in 3).
He offers so much more than his goals. He works tirelessly for the team with bundles of energy. Opposition defenders must be kn-ckered at the end of games playing against him. Our midfielders are scoring recently because of his presence. As we're a relatively small team his height is advantageous when defending set pieces. How many times did he defend the front post successfully against Everton's pub team?
He's a star player with a star attitude who I'd rather was in our team than against us. Keep plugging away Ollie and the goals will come.

Amen brother.