Unai Emery admits he has a “challenge” on his hands to make the most of strikers Jhon Duran and Ollie Watkins after both scored in Aston Villa’s 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Everton.
Watkins struck his first two goals of the Premier League season either side of the break to cancel out Everton’s two-goal lead, given to them by Dwight McNeil and Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Duran has been Villa’s super-sub in recent weeks and this was no different as he collected the ball 30 yards from goal and arrowed the ball past Jordan Pickford for a stunning winner that even the England number one watched back on the big screen.
Emery knows he has a welcome selection headache on his hands, and told a press conference: “Jhon’s potential is huge, I want to support him and help him and then he will get better, his confidence will grow with goals.
“He (Duran) came back on Friday and only trained once after playing with the international team and has been good with the matches he’s played, scoring goals, and for this reason he was playing the starting XI with Colombia.
“Today he scored a goal and had more chances to score but today he was very good.
“We have to feel comfortable with those strikers and have to figure out how we can play with two strikers, play with one or both, this is the challenge we have.
“Duran started playing two years ago, he scored against Liverpool here, scored shooting outside the box against Ajax. Sometime he scores, sometimes he doesn’t.
“He has potential to explore a lot more things with us – after he decided to stay here with us we started focusing more on his process, we are happier.”
Watkins failed to hit the back of the net in his first three games of the season but Emery had every confidence that the goals would come.
He added: “Ollie was creating chances in other matches we played before and didn’t score but he kept going.
“Because he was creating chances, the goals are coming and today was the day, it was fantastic.
“Even after two goals he had more chances to score but this is the way – his confidence is important for him, but I was always confident with the goals he scored.”
Everton allowed a two-goal lead to slip for the second successive game and fell to a fourth straight league defeat, leaving them still without a point.
Manager Sean Dyche thought his side fought well and were undone by a moment of brilliance from Duran.
He said: “Very frustrating last time (against Bournemouth) but today was a different scenario.
“We tried to do a lot of things today but we didn’t get the outcome so therefore we have to keep moving and thinking.
“Personally I thought the tactics were delivered well today, 2-1 up at half-time doing what I told us to do.
“The biggest moment of the game is we go through on goal and think we go 3-1 up, but sometimes everything seems to go against you.
“It’s 2-2 and they score a ‘worldie’ and you think that’s the way things go, correcting that is difficult when someone smashes it in from that far out.”
[(SK Slovan Bratislava) Strength]: 1. Coming into the UEFA Europa League Play-off round, SK Slovan Bratislava hope to grab the advantage of advancing in this home game, with full motivation.2. SK Slovan Bratislava defeated MFK Skalica 1-0 at home in the last Slovak Super Liga game. They kept unbeaten in the first 3 league games with 2 wins and 1 draw.3. SK Slovan Bratislava scored in 6 of the last...
[(SC Preussen Munster) Strength]: 1. SC Preussen Munster will play at home in this match. The team must defend their home honor and their fighting spirit is beyond doubt.[(SC Preussen Munster) Weakness]: 1. SC Preussen Munster suffered a defeat in the midweek DFB-Pokal match, being eliminated 3-5 by Hertha BSC after a grueling battle that went all the way to penalties, which is a blow to their mor...
[(Real Betis) Strength]: 1. Real Betis failed to start with a win in the first La Liga game this season. They are eager to win and boost their morale.2. Real Betis' new signing midfielder Rodrigo Riquelme contributed an assist in the first league game, showing decent performances.3. Real Betis scored in each of the recent 6 games, boasting stable offense.4. Real Betis received 10 wins, 7 draws, an...
[(Palmeiras) Strength]: 1. In the first leg, Palmeiras secured a resounding 4-0 away victory over Universitario de Deportes, gaining a huge advantage in the race for advancing. Hosting this game at their home ground, Palmeiras will naturally go all out to avoid being reversed by the opponents, ensuring a smooth advance to the next round and continuing their charge towards the Copa Libertadores tro...
[(River Plate) Strength]: 1. The two teams drew 0-0 in the first leg of the Copa Libertadores Round of 16. Returning to their home ground for this game, River Plate are united in their determination to beat Club Libertad and advance to the quarter-finals, with a strong desire to win.2. Red-hot River Plate kept unbeaten in the last 7 games with 4 wins and 3 draws. They beat Godoy Cruz Antonio Tomba...
[(NK Rijeka) Strength]: 1. NK Rijeka, powerhouses in Croatia, have a strong pursuit of honors. After dropping down from the UEFA Champions League qualifiers, the team are eager to prove themselves in the UEFA Europa League, aiming to enhance their stature in European football and bring glory to both the club and their supporters.[(NK Rijeka) Weakness]: 1. NK Rijeka defender Mile Skoric will miss t...
[(KFUM-Kameratene Oslo) Strength]: 1. KFUM-Kameratene Oslo have achieved 7 wins, 5 draws and 6 losses in the league so far this season, scoring 29 goals and conceding 20 in 18 league games, and currently rank 7th in the league standings. The team will play at home in this game with great desire to win.2. KFUM-Kameratene Oslo's major forward Johannes Nunez has performed steadily in the team's front...
[(Vaasan Palloseura) Strength]: 1. Vaasan Palloseura have been in poor recent form. In this home match, they are motivated to rebound.[(Vaasan Palloseura) Weakness]: 1. Vaasan Palloseura drew 0-0 with HJK Helsinki on the road in the last game. They are on a 1-game winless run.2. Vaasan Palloseura were winless in 7 consecutive home games, failing to show their home advantage.3. Vaasan Palloseura co...
[(West Ham United F.C.) Neutral]: 1. West Ham United F.C. recently expressed their desire to sign their upcoming opponents Chelsea's player Andrey Santos, but their offer was rejected. Chelsea informed West Ham that they have no intention of selling the player.2. West Ham United F.C. scored 46 goals in 38 league games last season, averaging over 1 goal per game. However, their offense is still con...
[(Aberdeen F.C.) Strength]: 1. If Aberdeen F.C. can advance to the UEFA Europa League group stage, it would mark a historic milestone for the club. This huge honor will undoubtedly greatly boost the team's fighting spirit.[(Aberdeen F.C.) Neutral]: 1. The two sides have never met before, and there are no relevant track record available for reference at present.[(Aberdeen F.C.) Weakness]: 1. Aberde...
- 1 Liverpool signing Leoni: I want to learn from Van Dijk
- 2 BVB, Monaco and Ajax go for unwanted West Ham midfielder Alvarez
- 3 ngland cricket legend’s granddaughter stuns in bikini
- 4 Alaves vs Levante Prediction for today 17 August 2025 - Football
- 5 Lamela explains retirement decision: It started 11 years ago...
- 6 Estevao Willian set for 'key' Chelsea role after debut vs Palace
- 7 TIPS - Gwangju FC VS Daejeon Hana Citizen
- 8 Emotional Arne Slot admits he had wanted to bring late Diogo Jota on as a substitute in Liverpool's dramatic victory over Bournemouth
- 9 Benjamin Sesko vs Viktor Gyokeres: Man Utd-Arsenal showdown sets early stage for big-money No.9s to show the Premier League what they can offer
- 10 Man United Make Goalkeeper Decision Amid Onana and Bayindir Uncertainty