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Ollie Watkins

Stelios

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(files this comment away for the end of the season)

I'd love this to be true, and I'm confident he will play for England some day - but I don't see him being selected ahead of all the proven, Premier League players that currently play in his position. Once he gets his PL transfer and shows what he can do at that level - then I'm sure he'll at the very least be considered and hopefully get the call. But that won't happen this season imo.
Could possibly see him being named in a squad if he keeps improving but he's got a few people to get ahead of like Leicester's James Madison who looks classy. Plus other Eng U21s like Phil Foden etc.

But the fact Ollie plays every week should be a massive help.
 

Terryhall

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Could possibly see him being named in a squad if he keeps improving but he's got a few people to get ahead of like Leicester's James Madison who looks classy. Plus other Eng U21s like Phil Foden etc.

But the fact Ollie plays every week should be a massive help.
Sure but then Sterling, Lallana, Rashford, Lingard... those are the currently England players he'll have to displace - not to mention the competition from the likes of Madison, Solanke, Foden et al. (Just to note also - Foden isn't actually selected for U21, he is in U19, because unlike e.g. Mason Mount he isn't playing at all, whereas Mount took a loan move to Derby and is doing well, therefore selected for U21. Time definitely on Foden's side though.)
 

andrew p long

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The Brentford source on here (who always seemed to be ahead of the curve as far as Ollie was concerned) has always maintained that the price was capped at a total of £4 million. So a maximum of another £2.2 million, if he's right.
Please show us the posts on here that say this.

I have had a look back at the 20 pages around the time of the signing. The only mention I can find of a £4m cap is post 1155 from Super Ronnie Jepson. So that is definitely not ‘the Brentford source on here’.

There were a number of posts before the sale from one Brentford fan correctly anticipating a deal, but not predicting a price save for one guess it might be £1.4m.

One Brentford fan said at post 1012 that the fee structure that got them a similar player deal was £1.5m plus add ons up to 5m AND a 20%sell on. Not a cap.

I venture to suggest that rather than get angry at the club about an entirely unproven cap we should disregard the suggestion unless and until Exehausted can show us the posts he thinks he is referring to.
 

grecIAN Harris

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Sure but then Sterling, Lallana, Rashford, Lingard... those are the currently England players he'll have to displace - not to mention the competition from the likes of Madison, Solanke, Foden et al. (Just to note also - Foden isn't actually selected for U21, he is in U19, because unlike e.g. Mason Mount he isn't playing at all, whereas Mount took a loan move to Derby and is doing well, therefore selected for U21. Time definitely on Foden's side though.)
The only person of those first four that he'd have to worry about is Rashford. Lingard and Lallana are midfielders and Sterling is a winger (not to mention $4!t for England and overrated generally). Solanke isn't in much of a position to prove anything being fourth or fifth choice striker at Scallypool. Maddison is getting an opportunity at Leicester and Phil Foden is yet another winger and Mason Mount is a midfielder. Of all the younger players mentioned I think it would be fair to suggest that Ollie has more experience (in terms of first team football) than any of them.
 

Terryhall

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The only person of those first four that he'd have to worry about is Rashford. Lingard and Lallana are midfielders and Sterling is a winger (not to mention $4!t for England and overrated generally). Solanke isn't in much of a position to prove anything being fourth or fifth choice striker at Scallypool. Maddison is getting an opportunity at Leicester and Phil Foden is yet another winger and Mason Mount is a midfielder. Of all the younger players mentioned I think it would be fair to suggest that Ollie has more experience (in terms of first team football) than any of them.
Are you seriously telling me that Ollie Watkins at Brentford is going to be called up for England ahead of Raheem Sterling? Have a word with yourself. (As an aside - Sterling is a long way from being "$4!t", whatever the red tops might want you to think).

All of the players I named play across the three behind the striker for England. That is also where Ollie plays.

If he gets picked for an England squad this season, I'll donate £500 to AS9 Foundation. It won't happen.
 

grecIAN Harris

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Are you seriously telling me that Ollie Watkins at Brentford is going to be called up for England ahead of Raheem Sterling? Have a word with yourself. (As an aside - Sterling is a long way from being "$4!t", whatever the red tops might want you to think).

All of the players I named play across the three behind the striker for England. That is also where Ollie plays.

If he gets picked for an England squad this season, I'll donate £500 to AS9 Foundation. It won't happen.
I didn't say he would, just drawing lines in your comparisons. If Ollie gets there he will be there as a striker (as Rashford should be), not an attacking midfielder (Lallana, Lingard, Mount) or a winger/wide attacker (Sterling, Foden). As for your aside about Sterling, I haven't read a daily newspaper in years. Sterling is a show pony who is too much bling and not enough end product. And no, 20 odd goals for Man City doesn't convince me otherwise. With the service the Man City strikeforce get, any vaguely decent forward could get 20 odd goals.
 

Terryhall

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I didn't say he would, just drawing lines in your comparisons. If Ollie gets there he will be there as a striker (as Rashford should be), not an attacking midfielder (Lallana, Lingard, Mount) or a winger/wide attacker (Sterling, Foden). As for your aside about Sterling, I haven't read a daily newspaper in years. Sterling is a show pony who is too much bling and not enough end product. And no, 20 odd goals for Man City doesn't convince me otherwise. With the service the Man City strikeforce get, any vaguely decent forward could get 20 odd goals.
On England, he won't get picked as a striker either - he is a great footballer and an excellent prospect, but right now he is not better than Kane, Vardy, Rashford, Welbeck, Sturridge... and for better or worse, the likes of Solanke, Calvert-Lewin, and other fringe players at PL clubs, are more likely to get the call than anyone at Championship level.

On Sterling, just looking at World Cup stats alone, he was 2nd in the England squad for short sprints (159), and 2nd in the England squad for distance covered above 20km/h (in both areas, only Lingard was better). More successful dribbles than any other England player in the QF against Sweden. Gave the ball away less often (38 times in total in the WC) than Alli (40), Kane (45), Young (46), Henderson (58) and Trippier (70).

So he makes more sprints than almost every other England player - runs further at top speed than almost every other England player - makes more successful dribbles than other England players - and gives the ball away less often.

But yeah, show pony.
 

ExeterCityLad

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Anyone who thinks Ollie is going to get an England call up this season has been smoking something.
 

grecIAN Harris

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On England, he won't get picked as a striker either - he is a great footballer and an excellent prospect, but right now he is not better than Kane, Vardy, Rashford, Welbeck, Sturridge... and for better or worse, the likes of Solanke, Calvert-Lewin, and other fringe players at PL clubs, are more likely to get the call than anyone at Championship level.

On Sterling, just looking at World Cup stats alone, he was 2nd in the England squad for short sprints (159), and 2nd in the England squad for distance covered above 20km/h (in both areas, only Lingard was better). More successful dribbles than any other England player in the QF against Sweden. Gave the ball away less often (38 times in total in the WC) than Alli (40), Kane (45), Young (46), Henderson (58) and Trippier (70).

So he makes more sprints than almost every other England player - runs further at top speed than almost every other England player - makes more successful dribbles than other England players - and gives the ball away less often.

But yeah, show pony.
So he can run around a lot whilst doing loads of step overs. God only knows where you dug the one out of giving the ball less times times than anybody else. How many chances did he create during the World Cup? How shots on target did he manage to get in? How many shots in general did he manage? One shot on target and only four in total in six games. Absolutely woeful. One cross in six games. One assist in six games. It's all very well being technically good and being able to run at hundred mile an hour for 90 minutes but you need to have mental awareness of what is going on around you to end up with far better stats when it comes to actually doing something productive with the ball. How many times did Sterling waste opportunities during the World Cup because he dallied and dithered for too long and the opportunity passed? Plenty is the answer. So yes, like I said, show pony. He looks really good but when you get to what really matters, like stuff done with the ball successfully, he ain't too clever.
Apologies to everybody else for going off on a tangent...………..
 
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Terryhall

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(Still OT but last I'll say on it) His stats are better the Oliver Giroud, who you might recall playing for the side the won the thing. He runs at defenders, at speed, and creates uncertainty which creates chances for others. There is a reason that he is highly thought of and picked by professional football managers at the highest level of the game.
 
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