Former Arsenal captain praises Aston Villa star

Eight games in all competition, only two wins. Eight games and in four of them they didn’t score a single goal. Aston Villa started this season without any big-name transfers, with player out of form and with financial instability which forced them to sell players. Emiliano Martinez was one the verge of a Manchester United transfer but that move failed. There were other unsatisfied players in the team and the lack of goals (and wins) didn’t help either. And finally against Bologna, in Europe, when coach Unai Emeri is like at home, The Villains finally won, before making another triumph, their first in the Premier League, over Fulham. One player stood out from that game, and even Feyenoord coach talked about him in particular.

Former Arsenal captain Robin Van Persie had a good start as Feyenoord boss. In seven games in all competition he recorded five wins and has only one defeat – in Europe against Braga. That is why Van Persie needs a win at home and he thinks that Ollie Watkins is the biggest threat. The England international failed to score in his previous seven Premier League appearances, but opened his account for the season by equalizing for Villa before half-time against Fulham. He came off the bench against Bologna last Thursday, won a penalty after coming on, though he missed the spot-kick. And Van Persie admitted he thought of Watkins a lot while preparing for the game.

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“We had a meeting about Aston Villa. He was in it quite a bit. He is definitely one of their threats. He is fast, technical, and in the box is where his qualities lie. He will be a big threat. He is really direct as a striker and has a really good feel for space” said Van Persie. For today’s game, Villa coach Unai Emery will be without midfield duo Youri Tielemans and Amadou Onana, while Tyrone Mings and Jadon Sancho are also unavailable.

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 2

Thursday

19.45: (2.00) Bologna (3.50) Freiburg (4.10)

19.45: (2.05) Brann (3.45) Utrecht (3.60)

19.45: (1.88) Celtic (3.85) Braga (4.15)

19.45: (2.70) FCSB (3.35) Young Boys (2.65)

19.45: (1.80) Fenerbahce (3.70) Nice (5.00)

19.45: (4.60) Ludogorets (3.70) Betis (1.77)

19.45: (1.60) Panathinaikos (4.25) Go Ahead (5.25)

19.45: (1.90) Plzen (3.70) Malmo (4.30)

19.45: (1.72) Roma (4.00) Lille (5.05)

22.00: (3.75) Basel (3.80) Stuttgart (1.92)

22.00: (1.80) Celta (3.70) PAOK (5.00)

22.00: (3.20) Feyenoord (3.50) Aston Villa (2.35)

22.00: (1.77) Genk (4.00) Ferencvaros (4.25)

22.00: (2.80) Maccabi T.A. (3.50) Dinamo Zagreb (2.60)

22.00: (1.48) Nott.Forest (4.75) Midtjylland (6.30)

22.00: (1.62) Olympique Lyon (4.10) Salzburg (5.25)

22.00: (1.55) Porto (4.50) Crvena Zvezda (7.00)

22.00: (2.10) Sturm (3.70) Rangers (3.60)

* odds are subject to change