Ollie Watkins has joked that he hopes not all of his Arsenal-supporting family leave the Emirates happy when Aston Villa face the Gunners on Tuesday — a night that also marks the England striker’s 30th birthday.

Watkins was Villa’s hero off the bench on Saturday, scoring twice to seal a 2–1 win at Chelsea and keep Unai Emery’s side firmly in the Premier League title race. The victory left Villa just three points behind Arsenal and one adrift of Manchester City in a tightly contested three-way battle at the top.

The forward revealed that several family members who support Arsenal will be in attendance in midweek, but he is hoping to give them mixed emotions by repeating his Stamford Bridge impact.

“I’ve got a lot of family coming to it that support them,” Watkins told Sky Sports.
“So they can be at the other end and hopefully watch me have the same outcome as tonight in a couple of days.”

Despite Villa’s remarkable form this season, Watkins admitted it has been a frustrating campaign on a personal level prior to his Chelsea double. He had managed just three goals before Saturday, while Emery recently disclosed the striker has been playing through knee discomfort for more than a year.

With the season entering a crucial stage, Watkins is determined to finish strongly, particularly with an eye on earning a place in England’s squad for next year’s World Cup.

“Obviously not where I want to be,” he said of his form.
“As a striker you want to be scoring every game. If you’re not doing that, then you want to be playing well and helping the team.

“I feel like I’ve had some good performances this year, but maybe not at the standard that I’ve set for myself. I’ve put a bit of pressure on myself.

“I haven’t been where I wanted to be, but I can use this as a marker now and push on from here.”