One in, one out as Aston Villa plot bold striker revolution – but would it be an upgrade?

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TEAMtalk

·1 March 2026

One in, one out as Aston Villa plot bold striker revolution – but would it be an upgrade?

Aston Villa are being tipped to sign a striker who already has a connection with Unai Emery per the latest reports, which also suggest Ollie Watkins could already be in his final season with the club.

Watkins has led the line well for Villa over the past five-and-a-half years since his move from Brentford. With 95 goals for the club to his name, he has been their focal point up front. If he scores two more goals in the league this season, it will be his sixth consecutive season reaching double figures of Premier League goals.

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However, it could also be his last season in a Villa shirt. Although various strikers have failed to dislodge him in recent years and he remains under contract until 2028, Watkins’ future has been thrown into doubt.

According to Football Insider, Villa’s ‘plan’ is to move Watkins on in the summer. If an offer of £30m comes in, it’s claimed they would be ‘likely to accept’ it.

The report states Villa’s ‘desire’ to sell the 30-year-old has grown ‘stronger’ than it was in January or last summer. As things stand, though, no potential suitors for Watkins are named by the website.

Historically, he has attracted interest from big clubs, but it remains to be seen who he might appeal to these days.

As for who could replace him at Villa, Tammy Abraham re-joined the club in a permanent move in the January transfer window. However, they would likely need another striker, perhaps with different qualities, for depth.

In a separate story, the same source claims Villa are still interested in Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson, whose loan move to Bayern Munich looks unlikely to become permanent.

As TEAMtalk’s Graeme Bailey recently confirmed, Villa are one of the clubs staying attentive to Jackson’s situation as his intermediaries assess interest from other clubs.

Unai Emery was one of Jackson’s managers at Villarreal and is believed to have given the green light to a reunion.

Would Jackson be an upgrade on Watkins?

Although Jackson is younger than Watkins and would allow Villa to futureproof their attack, he hasn’t quite had the same track record in the Premier League.

He did hit double figures of goals in both of his seasons with Chelsea, but didn’t reach the standards to prove himself as their long-term striker.

Over at Bayern, meanwhile, he has scored five goals from 22 games, often having to play second fiddle to Harry Kane.

Jackson could be decent playing under Emery again, even if he only scored three goals during their time together with Villarreal. After all, that was at a much earlier phase of his development.

But would he be as reliable as Watkins? Probably not.

It’s understandable why Villa might want to cash in on Watkins before his contract runs down too much, now that he’s the wrong side of his 30th birthday.

They will have to assess Abraham’s form over the rest of the season to decide if they need a new starting striker to replace Watkins – which Jackson might not be good enough for – or more of a rotation option, where he could still fit the bill.