Unai Emery did nothing to deny that Ollie Watkins had refused to play for Aston Villa in their sobering 4-0 defeat by Brighton at the Amex on Sunday. The head coach had a selection crisis up front with Brian Madjo and Tammy Abraham injured. However, he did not include Watkins in the matchday squad as the England striker considers a move to Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
Emery was forced to rely on the attacking midfielder Emiliano Buendía as an emergency striker and his team disappeared without trace on the south coast. They were 4-0 down after 31 minutes and had their new signing João Gomes sent off on his debut in the 40th minute. Gomes kicked up and out at the Brighton striker Georginio Rutter after being dispossessed by him.
Al-Hilal have made a number of bids for Watkins, all of which have been rejected. It is understood the 30-year-old is open to the move and Emery talked on Friday like a manager who was realistic about the sale happening. Villa would plainly like to replace Watkins should he depart as they approach the end of another difficult summer window. They have already sold Ezri Konsa, Morgan Rogers, Lucas Digne and Youri Tielemans, while they are expected to move on Emiliano Martínez.
Emery was asked why he had not picked Watkins against Brighton. “This question is for him,” he said. “I can answer only with my silence.” Emery was then asked if Watkins had refused to play, to which he said: “I think you can call him and you can call his agent and he can respond.”
The Guardian have contacted Watkins’s agent for comment.
“He [Watkins] can only explain his answer, I can’t,” Emery added, after being asked if he felt let down by Watkins.
Emery reported that Madjo would be out for “two weeks more … more or less” while attacking midfielder Johan Manzambi – who has been the club’s marquee summer signing – would “need maybe some days more [than that]”. He was unclear about a timeframe for Abraham’s return.
Emery talked up the resistance of his players in the second half against Brighton and said he was optimistic about finding solutions for the season ahead. But he returned to the difficult preparations for the opening fixture, noting that: “Two strikers are injured and another striker gives his answer.”
The head coach added: “This problem [with the transfer market] … we had every season and every season we overcame it. It’s something we have to accept and always we reacted, especially the players. This is something hard for us every year but we are calm. With this result, it’s more difficult to explain but calm, work, be positive and find solutions for the next week and after the transfer window.”
