Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins appears to have learned the harsh reality regarding his chances of getting more minutes in the current World Cup campaign.
The Aston Villa forward has found out about his opportunity to play at the 2026 World Cup. The tournament has reached the quarter-final stage, and England are set to meet Norway. With the number of games remaining limited, there is less opportunity for the 30-year-old forward to feature.
He is still hoping to be fielded more often, especially if the team is unable to score after knocking on the door of the opposition’s defence. Sadly, Watkins eventually learned the truth about his prospects from his own manager, Thomas Tuchel, as reported by Birmingham Mail.
“Change Harry Kane in a game that is stuck at 0-0? Taking Harry off, no?”
“Everyone is pushing and I think we had three different goalscorers in the first match and to rely on Harry is just a natural thing because he loves responsibility and he takes it. We rely on Harry because we can, because he’s our forward, but we don’t over-rely on him.”
Watkins has largely been kept quiet on the sidelines alongside the other forwards, such as Ivan Toney, as Kane has been in fine form throughout the World Cup so far. Apart from the goalless stalemate against Ghana on matchday two, the England skipper has scored in every game.
Kane netted a brace while dismantling Croatia and in the victory over DR Congo in the Round of 16, whereas he scored one goal each against Panama and Mexico. He has also provided one assist, making him virtually untouchable in the team.
Watkins, on the other hand, has made just one appearance as a substitute, coming in during the final group-stage game against Panama. He was only on the pitch for six minutes. His playing time is unlikely to increase unless England struggle to score until extra time. Such a situation might push Tuchel to consider playing Watkins alongside the captain.
The 30-year-old striker still hopes for his next opportunity and believes he can make the difference, just as he did in the EURO 2024 semi-final when he scored the winning goal. Watkins shared his thoughts with the Mirror.
“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. It’s the best feeling to come on and change the game and I’m hoping to do that again this tournament.”
The idea of deploying both in a crucial game could be worth considering to unsettle the opposition. Yet, they have never played together at international level.
Kane, who is more versatile, could play as a number 10 behind Watkins, who would lead the line in the current 4-2-3-1 system. Alternatively, Tuchel could employ a 3-4-2-1 formation with Kane and Jude Bellingham as the two number 10s behind the former Brentford man.
However, such an approach appears rather unlikely since England already have players who regularly occupy the number 10 role, namely Bellingham and Morgan Rogers. It would be quite a waste to deploy Kane there while leaving one of the team’s top talents on the bench.
The post Aston Villa star learns the hard truth about his chance to play in the World Cup appeared first on AVillaFan.com – Aston Villa Fan Site.
