Aston Villa star shares his comments on his ‘supporting’ role in England during the world cup campaign in North America.
Aston Villa star who is also the key man in his club, Ollie Watkins, appears to have understood the situation in the camp. His experience in the national team during the major tournament has taught him something.
The 30-year old striker shared his view on his current role as reported by Birmingham mail.
“I feel like there’s no pressure on me to come on at the end of the day. I think the expectation for me is people don’t see me playing, obviously they see Harry playing, but I know what I can bring to the table.”
Ollie Watkins knows that as long as Harry Kane is fit, he would not be the first choice and he understands it. The England captain is certainly more experienced and currently playing at the higher and top level more regularly with Bayern Munich. Kane is also the regular top scorer at the club and international level. He added his opinion on that.
“I feel like I understand the competition now, I understand that everyone has their moment, everyone has a part to play and, when I see other players having their moment, I’m really happy for them,”
“I experienced mine at a great time, obviously in the semi-final, but leading up to that point, before everyone had a part to play in certain moments and I know that’s the same for this tournament as well.”
The former Brentford man also stated the advantage of coming off the bench instead of being a starter.
“I watch the game when I’m on the bench, I can see the game opens up. It’s a completely different game when you start a game of football than when you finish it. I’ve experienced that as a substitute, there are so many more opportunities when you come on.”
“A lot of people are tired, they lose focus and sometimes it can be better to be a substitute than to start the game. I’ve spoken about it so many times before, I said I was going to score that day and I did. It’s the best feeling to come on and change the game and I’m hoping to do that again this tournament.”
Watkins seems to know how to contribute well on the right moment. His goal against Netherland in EURO 2024 semifinal was certainly the monumental one. He only played for nine minutes but his presence made the difference on the pitch.
In UEFA Nations League games versus Greece and Finland in October 2024, he provided one assist in each game after coming off the bench. The forward who has netted seven goals for Three Lions so far also did the same in England’s last friendly game before the world cup opener versus Costa Rica. The Torquay-born striker bagged one goal as a substitute.
He also appreciates the former England star in 2000s, Michael Owen who has been giving him some advice on his form.
“He just gave me an insight on how he felt I could improve and at the end of the day I felt like Michael Owen was underrated really. I just reached out to him and it’s good that I’ve got a player of that quality to use as a sound board.”
Let us hope that he can deliver his best to create magic moments in the world cup. Who knows he could be what England needs to end their 60-year title drought this summer.
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