Gonzalo Garcia opens the scoring for Real Madrid against Borussia Dortmund at the Club World Cup | Luke Hales/Getty Imagesplaceholder image
Gonzalo Garcia opens the scoring for Real Madrid against Borussia Dortmund at the Club World Cup | Luke Hales/Getty Images | Getty Images
Sunderland and Wolves are among Villa’s Premier League rivals chasing La Liga star
Ollie Watkins enjoyed a halcyon two seasons for Aston Villa and England, but with only one goal in 16 games so far this season, it seems pretty safe to declare that purple patch over with the striker turning 30 before the January transfer window opens.
And though Aston Villa are so far finding ways to navigate the dearth of goals or assists from their frontman, principally through the joint-fourth best defence in the top flight, they must improve their scoring at some point if they’re to qualify for Europe for the fourth successive season.
Only four teams outside the relegation zone have scored less Premier League goals than Unai Emery’s side this season while it’s not like Watkins isn’t getting good service either. Watkins has an expected goals (xG) tally of four goals in the league and Europe this season according to Opta, and via FBref.com he’s in the top five most wasteful strikers for both the Premier League and Europa League by goals scored minus xG.
By contrast, in the top flight last campaign Watkins was in the top 20 finishers at centre-forward and outperformed his xG. He struck in the Premier League every 167 minutes across 2023/24 and 2024/25 (compared to a goal every 870 minutes this time around) alongside making 23 assists, produced 13 goal contributions in Europe.
Perhaps most memorably proved arguably more effective up front for England at Euro 2024 including scoring THAT sensational goal to send The Three Lions to the final. The other, brighter side of that coin is this shows both that Villa are clearly creating scoring chances for Watkins and he’s proven his quality so he should get the opportunity to fill his boots if he can return to somewhere near his best.
Garcia can replace Watkins as Villa’s star striker
After a fantastic season for Real Madrid Castilla in the Primera Federacion, Spain’s third tier, yielded 25 goals, Garcia burst onto the global stage at the Club World Cup by notching four goals and an assist in six games including strikes against Borussia Dortmund and Juventus.
His goal against the 2024 Champions League runners-up was particularly impressive and reminiscent of a Watkins strike, ghosting into the space between the centre-backs, timing his run perfectly and applying the deftest of touches at an awkward height to turn the ball past Gregor Kobel.
Garcia’s instincts are phenomenal and he possesses the movement and finishing to back it up, able to create the space he needs in a crowded penalty area, work the channels and peel off the defender to complete a lightning counter-attack goal, or link up play to provide a teammate with a chance.
The 21-year-old’s electric Club World Cup form hasn’t yet translated into meaningful minutes for Real Madrid unfortunately, with Los Blancos not renowned for effectively transitioning top talent into the first team, with the pressure on Xabi Alonso in the dugout not helping Garcia’s hopes.
Can Villa fight off Sunderland and Wolves competition for Garcia?
Villa won’t be chasing Garcia to themselves though. Fichajes are reporting Real Madrid want €20 million (£17.6m) for the star striker, the latest hot prospect to roll out of La Fabrica (literally, ‘The Factory’).
While Real Madrid’s academy isn’t famous for delivering world-class players to Los Blancos’ first team, it serves a vital role in financing the clubs’ Galatico signings and proved that again this summer as the sales of Victor Munoz and Rafel Obrador raised €10m (£8.8m) in around an hour.
So they’ll simply be looking for the biggest offer, with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sunderland also interested in Garcia. Aston Villa should certainly be in the best position to pitch for the 21-year-old, with Wolves’ hiring of Rob Edwards indicating they have at least one eye on spending next season in the Championship.
Their most important player also occupies the same position as Garcia (though the Spaniard can be deployed on the wing, he’s most effective as a number nine). So splashing that amount of money on a youngster with such limited experience wouldn’t be the smartest move even if Garcia could likely do a job in the second tier.
Meanwhile Sunderland already have ample stocks at striker through Wilson Isidor, Brian Brobbey and Eliezer Mayenda plus Bertrand Traore and Ahmed Abdullahi in a pinch. So the way should be clear for Villa to strike if they choose, for a player who could begin rotating with Watkins and has shown the ability to score both consistently and against some of Europe’s best sides.
Continue Reading