Watkins credits England snub for career-best form and Europa League success

Ollie Watkins considers being excluded from the England squad earlier this year as the turning point that ignited the finest form of his career. The Aston Villa striker faced uncertainty over his World Cup participation after missing the March international camp but views the experience as motivation to demonstrate his capabilities on the global stage.

Watkins described his omission from the England squad for friendlies against Uruguay and Japan in March as a "blessing in disguise." At that time, England manager Thomas Tuchel chose not to include him, a decision that cast doubt on Watkins’ chances of making the World Cup roster.

While attending England's pre-World Cup training camp in Florida, Watkins reflected on the disappointment and acknowledged the snub as a wake-up call. He stated, "To be fair, before the March camp, I had started to pick up my form. I scored an important goal and had some big performances against Lille in the round of 16. So my form was starting to pick up, I think it was a blessing in disguise. Sometimes, when something gets taken away from you, you realise how important it is, and it gives you that fire in your belly to come back and show people what you can do."

Following this setback, the 30-year-old striker embarked on an impressive scoring streak, netting 11 goals in 12 matches. This prolific run played a key role in Aston Villa's historic top-four finish in the Premier League and their Europa League triumph. Watkins attributes his mental toughness for regaining his place in Tuchel’s national team ahead of the summer tournament.

He explained, "The manager always had faith in me. So, it is nice I could repay him with the performances and goals and to show I deserved to be here. I felt in the big moments, when the team needed me, I stepped up and came up with some big goals and some big performances."

Watkins faces competition for playing time behind England captain Harry Kane, with Ivan Toney as a direct rival for the super-sub role. Toney recently completed a season with 42 goals across all competitions for Saudi club Al-Ahli and has tournament experience, having appeared three times as a substitute during Euro 2024, including providing a crucial assist in the 2-1 round-of-16 win over Slovakia. Watkins, who scored the decisive goal off the bench in the semi-final against the Netherlands, believes the variety of striker types strengthens England’s prospects.

Regarding squad depth, Watkins said, "Everyone’s got a part to play in this competition, whether it’s early stages, later stages, we just have to be ready, and we’re all working together as a team to achieve something special." On his relationship with Toney, he added, "I think it’s good, me and Ivan are different players, and you need that, you need to have versatility. At the end of the day, Ivan’s a proven goalscorer, he’s shown it throughout all his career. Even in the last Euros, there were times where he came on when the team needed him, and then I had my moment, obviously, in the semi-final as well. I think it’s amazing that we’ve got Ive [Toney] here as he’s a clinical goalscorer."

Watkins has earned 20 caps for England and scored six international goals. His resilience was evident during Euro 2024, where he appeared three times as a substitute and scored the late winner in the 2-1 semi-final victory over the Netherlands. In the 2025-2026 season, Watkins played a pivotal role in Aston Villa's Europa League title win, ending a 44-year wait for a major trophy, while scoring 21 goals across all competitions.