Ollie Watkins News: Plays 64 minutes in friendly

Watkins (strain) played 64 minutes in Saturday's 2-2 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt in a pre-season friendly, confirming his return from injury.

Watkins was dealing with a muscle injury at the start of the offseason but that issue appears to be behind him after he played 64 minutes against Frankfurt on Saturday and scored the opener on an assist from Donyell Malen. This is good news for Aston Villa since the striker will be able to build on his fitness ahead of the 2025/26 season as he is expected to remain the main threat in the frontline.