Aston Villa need a new manager, and if reports are to be believed, one man they may have a look at is Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Hasenhuttl would be an interesting appointment for a number of reasons. The Austrian plays an incredibly entertaining high-pressing system and that could suit Villa and their personnel.
However, perhaps the most exciting thing about the potential arrival of Hasenhuttl is the potential partnership that could be struck up between Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins.
We’ve seen Ings and Watkins play together this season already – unfortunately, they haven’t been brilliant together so far, but in Hasenhuttl’s 4-2-2-2 system they could be incredibly dangerous.
Think about it, the Saints boss already knows how to get the best out of Ings. After all, he did score 21 league goals for Southampton in 2019/20 under Hasenhuttl.
However, in this system, a striker is often only as good as his partner. Che Adams’ pace and non-stop running off the ball made him a great foil for Ings, and there’s reason to believe Watkins could do the same.
Watkins certainly has the pace to match what Adams brought to that Saints team, while Dean Smith recently described him as the best presser in the Premier League, and that would suit Hasenhuttl’s style to a tee.
Ings and Adams were a great partnership at Southampton for a period and if the former RB Leipzig manager comes to Villa Park, there’s no reason why Ings can’t recreate an even more deadly partnership with Watkins.
When Ings arrived at Villa many were excited about his potential combination with Watkins, and while it hasn’t quite worked out so far, appointing Hasenhuttl could be the spark that ignites this partnership and makes both players explode.
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