Unai Emery currently has two strikers in excellent form, Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran. Both scored in the 3-1 win over Wolves in round 5 of the Premier League. However, the Aston Villa captain only used 1 of the 2 names in the starting lineup.
Ollie Watkins has scored 3 goals in the first 5 matches of the season. Meanwhile, Jhon Duran has scored 4 goals in just 131 minutes of play in the Premier League, along with 1 goal in the League Cup. The duo even almost had their first goal in the Champions League when both were denied by VAR.
Since joining Villa in January last year, Duran has scored a total of nine goals coming off the bench, averaging one goal every 84 minutes. The Colombian striker is showing remarkable progress this season but is still only a reserve option. So why didn't Unai Emery include Watkins and Duran in the starting lineup?
Since Duran joined the Villa Park team, both Watkins and he have only started together twice. However, both of those matches did not bring positive results. In the first match against West Ham in March, Duran was substituted at half-time when Aston Villa were losing 0-1 (the match ended in a 1-1 draw). The second match was a 0-5 defeat to Crystal Palace last season.
Duran has often been brought on to replace Watkins (18 times). Watkins, meanwhile, has also represented Duran five times. These two players have played together 26 times, but mostly in a short period of time. Before the match against Wolves, the pair had only played together for more than 20 minutes on five occasions.
Unai Emery does not seem to be completely confident that they can play effectively together. However, could the match against Wolves change the Spanish strategist's thinking? It was the first time both have scored on the pitch and Duran played a key role in Watkins' equaliser.
Choosing both from the start would be a bold decision, especially that would mean eliminating Morgan Rogers, who has been impressive. There is also reason to continue to maintain the current tactic, as Duran has often made a difference every time he comes off the bench. However, it is undeniable that using both could bring a new look to Aston Villa's attack.
We are learning, learning how to use different players. I am very happy that the players are performing well. The team needs excellent individual performances - Emery shared.
Notably, the victory over Wolves shows that Unai Emery's options are extremely diverse. When option A fails, they still have options B, C or even many other options. This becomes extremely necessary for teams without many superstars in the squad like Aston Villa.
