The World Cup is approaching fast, with the opening games in Qatar kicking off next month. As is to be expected, there has been heated debate as to England’s chances in this year’s competition. After narrowly missing out on glory in the final of Euro 2020, and after a relatively successful campaign in the previous World Cup, some have felt that this England team’s chance of securing silverware is a matter of when, not if.
However, the national team’s performances have undeniably faltered since then. Their Nations League campaign has been disastrous, seeing England relegated off the back of a series of poor results. Where did it all go wrong? Many have pointed to the lack of scoring as the issue, with England going on a stretch of 450 minutes without scoring from open play. Regardless, most agree that the squad, talented though it is, needs refreshment.
There is a wealth of home-grown talent in the Premier League Gareth Southgate can choose from. Let’s take a look at Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins and discuss whether he would make a good addition to the England squad for the World Cup.
A squad in need of a shake-up
There can be no denying England have an immensely talented pool of forwards to draw from. With Raheem Sterling, Tammy Abraham, Bukayo Saka and, of course, Harry Kane, you’d be hard pushed to find a more star-studded national squad in world football. This is why, despite poor recent results, England remain among the favourites for the upcoming World Cup. Check the Unibet football odds, as just one example of a plethora of sports betting platforms. Only Brazil, Argentina and France are ahead of the Three Lions.
Why then have the goals dried up? With these players, surely England should be putting teams to the sword on a regular basis. Despite the talent of the aforementioned players, perhaps an overreliance on them has made the squad slightly stale. Opponents have them figured out, and difficult defeats over the past few years have left some players feeling jaded and disheartened.
If this is the problem, then the obvious solution is to bring in fresh blood: new faces who are eager to perform and free from the cynicism bred by some of England’s bitter recent disappointments.
Ollie Watkins
Ollie Watkins has often been linked to the national team but, despite previous call-ups, where he has scored twice in seven appearances, he has failed to secure a regular place.
Watkins joined Aston Villa from Brentford in 2020. In his first season there, he netted 14 goals, including a hat trick against champions Liverpool, becoming the club’s top scorer for the season. He plays mainly as a traditional centre forward at Aston Villa but has been played on either wing in the past and has bagged goals from both the left and right wing positions.
Many think that with these numbers, Watkins would have been an obvious choice for the England squad. However, when he was playing well so were England, and there were fewer cries for a refresh of the national team. Now that England’s form has dipped, so has Watkins’! Up until this weekend, he had scored just once in this league campaign and was coming under some fire for his lack of contribution.
Will changes at Villa benefit Watkins – and England?
Watkins’ underwhelming recent performances could be seen as a reflection of the greater malaise at Aston Villa. In this case, if he starts scoring goals again that could put him back in the frame for Southgate’s squad. With Watkins scoring his first goal in two months in Villa’s 4-0 win over Brentford this weekend, perhaps the recent manager change at Villa will be the catalyst that pushes the Devon man right back into contention. With Southgate determined to keep his card’s close to his chest, we will have to wait and see.
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