Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins has his sights set on two huge goals, taking the club back to the Champions League and cementing his place in Villa’s legendary 100 Club.
The striker, who has already made his mark as the club's top scorer in recent years, revealed in an exclusive interview with Telecom Asia that he is determined to guide Villa to European glory once again.
We’ve got the talent, the squad, and the ambition to make it back to the Champions League. It’s something we’ve been building towards, and now it’s all about taking the next step.
Villa has been on an upward trajectory under manager Unai Emery, and with Watkins leading the attack, the dream of returning to Europe’s elite competition is within reach.
But the striker insists there’s more work to do before they can claim their rightful place among the continent’s best.
We’re pushing to get back into the Champions League, and I believe we can do it. There’s a lot of quality in this squad, and we’ve got to keep pushing for that top-four spot.
As Villa’s top scorer and one of the key figures in their attack, Watkins is also eyeing a spot in the 100 Club, a prestigious group of players who have scored 100 goals or more in what most people describe as the best league in the world.
He said of his ambitions:
To keep scoring goals. A hundred Premier League goals, I think that puts you into another category. I am not too far off that, 25, that can happen in a season. And to win a trophy. You know we were all disappointed in how we performed against Palace.
We had been on an amazing run before that and such a big day for the club and us boys didn’t turn up. We hold our hands up for that but that is something we had our eyes on, me especially, this record and winning a trophy as well. It would have been the cream on the top for this season.
Despite the disappointment of missing out on silverware that would have been the FA Cup head they beat Palace, Watkins insists that this season has been one of clear progress for Villa.
100 percent. If you’d told any Villa fan at the start of the season we’d be in the Champions League quarter-finals, beat PSG at Villa Park, and have a semi-final at Wembley — and then be fighting for Champions League again in the final two games of the season, I think every Villa fan would have snapped your hand off.
It wasn’t too long ago we lost our first game of the season, and it felt like the world was coming to an end. But football changes quickly, and this season has been incredible.
