Troy Deeney sets record straight after Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins aimed cheeky dig at him
Troy Deeney has clarified comments he made about Ollie Watkins after the Aston Villa star made a cheeky dig at him.
Former Watford and Birmingham striker Deeney claimed Watkins was “a winger trying to be a striker” and was unconvinced by the 28-year-old in one-on-one duels.
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Deeney went on to say he would opt for Brentford’s Ivan Toney over Watkins when selecting his England squad for Euro 2024.
In response to Deeney’s claims, Watkins celebrated his goal in Aston Villa’s 2-0 win at Arsenal last weekend by posting on Instagram with the caption: “Not bad for a winger trying to become a striker.”
Not one to be denied the last word, Deeney responded to the Aston Villa striker’s post and clarified his previous comments.
“Then he should do it,” Deeney told talkSPORT when asked about Watkins’ criticism of him. “The beauty of it is when you actually listen, I say it’s not negative. So when you look at Exeter and Brentford, where did he play? To the left of a three.
“When did he play up front as a full striker? This season for Villa.
“So it’s not a negative and remember what we did very well was forgetting the question which was, ‘Would you take Ivan (Toney) or would you take Ollie’ (at the Euro).
“I know both guys and I said personally I would take Ivan. I have more confidence in Ivan to finish the face-off.
“I also warned him afterwards that I would take Ollie over Marcus Rashford.”
When asked how many strikers he would take to Germany this summer, Deeney named Watkins as one of two in-form Premier League strikers to replace skipper Harry Kane.
“I would take three attackers,” he added. “Kane Ivan, Ollie – they would be all three.”
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“Ollie decided to answer me, it’s no problem, it’s what he should do. I’ve met Ollie 20 or 30 times. Everyone thinks I have this vendetta against people, that’s just my opinion.
“You have the right to have an opinion and you also have the right to disagree with my opinion. What I find funny is he just beat Arsenal in a massive game and you want to talk about me.
“So clearly I have to say something half decent because no one can say what I’m saying is wrong because actually he’s a left winger who now plays as a striker.”
Deeney believes the negative way his opinion of Watkins has been taken is due to his club affiliation.
The 35-year-old is a staunch supporter of Villa’s bitter rivals Birmingham City and claims that was the main reason his comments were taken out of context.
“It’s because I’m a Birmingham City fan and this is just lazy journalism. But if you look closely, I’ve written five articles this year about Aston Villa and how good they’ve been. It pains me to say it, but they were good.
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