’Not a better team…’ Craig Burley says 14-goal Premier League star simply won’t join Tottenham or Chelsea

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Ollie Watkins is having the season of his life at Aston Villa, but any kind of transfer to Tottenham and Chelsea has been swiftly shut down.

More than halfway through the season, the 28-year-old could argue he has been one of the best players in the Premier League.

His numbers certainly prove that because, as Unai Emery’s Aston Villa sit fourth, their star striker has scored 14 goals and supplied 12 assists.

But Craig Burley was quick to push away any suggestions of Ollie Watkins leaving, especially to clubs like Tottenham and Chelsea, as he told ESPN.

The former Scotland international doesn’t see much of a difference between Aston Villa and Spurs currently – the London club, who have one game in hand, are five points behind fourth-placed Villa in the table.

And stated in a blunt fashion that Chelsea simply aren’t a better side than those chasing Champions League football, with Mauricio Pochettino’s side sitting in the bottom half of the Premier League table and losing the League Cup final to Liverpool on Sunday.

Whilst those two clubs crave a number nine like Olle Watkins, they will have to look elsewhere for an answer to their striker problems because it isn’t going to be the England international.

Should Ollie Watkins leave Aston Villa?

“Where is Ollie Watkins going to go that is better than where he is,” questioned Burley.

On going to Arsenal: “I don’t know if he sees it that way, Arteta – if it’s not one of those top three, which I don’t think it’s going to be.

“Tottenham? But is that better than where he is?! Chelsea would be more glamorous, but it’s not a better team, so I don’t know where Ollie Watkins is going to go that’s better than what he has at Villa.”

Ollie Watkins at Aston Villa for the long-term

The project Villa are building is quite incredible and they are showing clubs like Chelsea, who have spent a billion only to go backwards, how it should be done.

Players like Watkins have played a huge part in the club’s rise and, after recently signing a new contract at Villa Park, he is in this for the long term.

It’s now a case of taking this goalscoring success to even higher heights, into the Champions League and possibly delivering that much-craved trophy fans want.

Chelsea will probably feel if they had a number nine at Wembley against Liverpool, then they would have won the League Cup, whilst Spurs watched their star striker Harry Kane head for the exit door to search for those trophies.