February 17, (THEWILL) – Ollie Watkins was the hero for Aston Villa on Saturday, scoring both goals in a hard-fought 2-1 away victory against Fulham. The in-form striker netted his 13th English Premier League goal of the campaign as Unai Emery’s side held on for an important three points at Craven Cottage.
Watkins thought he had opened the scoring early on but saw his effort ruled out for offside. Villa continued to threaten though and made the breakthrough midway through the first half courtesy of a defensive error. Antonee Robinson’s wayward throw put Willian under pressure, allowing Jacob Ramsey to muscle the midfielder off the ball and slot to Watkins to drill home.
The Englishman doubled Villa’s advantage before the hour mark, catching Issa Diop napping to latch onto Youri Tielemans’ pass and clinically find the bottom corner for 2-0. Fulham pulled one back through Rodrigo Muniz’s close-range finish but could not find an equaliser, despite the introductions of Alex Iwobi and Adama Traore from the bench.
The victory sees Aston Villa climb to 4th position on 49 points while Fulham remain in 12th, now six points adrift of Wolverhampton Wanderers in 11th. Watkins’ clinical finishing was the difference on the day as Emery’s pragmatic approach earned a vital three points on the road.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
