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Journalist David Ornstein has reported that Manchester United have made an inquiry to sign Ollie Watkins from Aston Villa. However, he does not see the Villa Park side selling their star player this summer.
Speaking on The Athletic's YouTube channel, Ornstein said that Unai Emery's side see themselves going into the new season with Watkins leading the attack. The journalist credited his colleague Laurie Whitwell for the news and added that the striker was on Manchester United's wishlist. He said via GiveMeSport:
"Ollie Watkins, as reported by our colleague Laurie Whitwell, is among those on Manchester United's recruitment list. I'd be surprised if he wasn't on the recruitment list of top clubs. He's such a good striker and a good lad, and they've maybe held some enquiries with his camp. I'm not sure if that's gone to Villa directly. From my conversations with Villa, they see themselves as having no intention to part with Ollie Watkins. They want him to continue with him up front for them."
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The Red Devils are in the market for a striker and have suffered multiple setbacks. Liam Delap opted to join Chelsea, while Viktor Gyokeres is now in advanced talks with Arsenal.
Paul Ince urged Manchester United to sign Ollie Watkins
Paul Ince was talking to The Telegraph when he urged Manchester United to sign Ollie Watkins. He believes that the Aston Villa star is ideal for the attack and said:
"If you picked your best 11 players from the Premier League, you wouldn't have one United player in there. And you probably could have said that in the last six or seven years. How can Liverpool go and sign the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister, and Arsenal get Declan Rice?"
"Why haven't United been in the market for them? Are they looking in the right places? I don't think they are right now, so it's a big summer for everyone involved at the club, that's for sure. They badly need more firepower and I'm looking at someone like Ollie Watkins – a striker who can actually score goals – as a player United need to be going for."
It was not the first time Ince suggested Watkins to Manchester United. Speaking to Ladbrokes in 2024, the Red Devils legend claimed that they needed a player like him or Ivan Toney to lead the attack at Old Trafford.
