Topics: Aston Villa, Football, Ollie Watkins, Unai Emery, Manchester United, Marcus Rashford
Aston Villa man Ollie Watkins has reportedly been linked with a huge summer transfer.
On Saturday, Watkins started for Unai Emery's team as they battered Newcastle United at Villa Park.
Goals from Watkins, Ian Maatsen and Amadou Onana, plus an own goal from Dan Burn, sealed a 4-1 win. Fabian Schar was the scorer for the visitors.
Speaking after the match, Watkins revealed he was furious with manager Emery for not starting him against Paris Saint Germain in midweek.
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He told Sky Sports: "Champions League, we've put in a lot of hard graft in the last few years to get to that position. I played 20 minutes against PSG in both games, so I'm not going to lie - I was fuming I wasn't playing. I let him (Emery) know that. He's the manager at the end of the day. I respect his decision.
"But I'm not one of the players happy to sit on the bench. It's something I haven't experienced before and then to miss out on the biggest stage, you always want to play, especially in the Champions League."
Now, a report has emerged claiming Watkins could leave Villa in the summer.
As reported by the Daily Star, Manchester United are considering an offer of cash plus Marcus Rashford in exchange for Watkins.
Rashford has impressed since leaving United for Villa Park on loan during the January transfer window.
As a result, United could now use Rashford as a makeweight in a bid to bring Watkins, who has previously been linked with Arsenal, to Old Trafford.
So far in the 24/25 season, Watkins has managed 16 goals and 13 assists in 48 matches across all competitions for Villa.
Currently, Watkins is contracted with Villa until 2028 but has been linked with a departure on multiple occasions.
Further expanding on his disappointment of starting on the bench against PSG, Watkins continued: "Me and a few others are disappointed we didn't start the game but like I said, it's the manager's decision. We did end up beating them but obviously not across both legs.
"The team played really well but I wanted to be out on the pitch much longer. I wanted to be starting in the important games because I've played a big part to get to where we are today."
Villa are back in action on Tuesday night when they take on Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
