Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins could ask to leave the club 'if he's getting negative vibes', transfer insider Dean Jones has told GiveMeSport

The lowdown

Football Insider reported on Wednesday that Villa are willing to listen to offers for Watkins in the remaining weeks of the transfer window.

They claimed that Steven Gerrard has a 'tense relationship' with the striker, and that the duo 'do not see eye to eye'.

Villa entered the window wanting to sign an 'A-list' forward who would be a level up on Watkins and Danny Ings.

The ex-Brentford man, who made the move in 2020, still has three years left on his contract.

The latest

Jones can see the situation with Watkins going either way - either he decides to stay in the hope of proving his doubters wrong, or he looks to join another club where he might feel more appreciated.

“I think Ollie Watkins wants to prove a point and stay at Aston Villa,” he said.

“But, ultimately, if he’s getting negative vibes from inside his own club, he’ll want very positive vibes from somewhere else and know that he’s actually wanted.”

The verdict

Watkins demonstrated his value with his display in the 2-1 win against Everton on Saturday.

He set-up both of Villa's goals, cutting it back to Danny Ings for the opener and then sliding a ball across the face of goal for Emiliano Buendia.

In additional, he was successful with two of his dribbles and 20 of his 24 passes (via SofaScore).

He did enough to earn the Premier League's official Man of the Match award.

It was the kind of display that just might make Villa pause and reconsider their reported stance.