'All you dream of': Ollie Watkins describes Aston Villa Europa League victory and praises set piece coach
Villa ran away with it in the Europa League final to pick up their first trophy for three decadea.
Ollie Watkins insisted Aston Villa’s historic Europa League win is ‘all you dream of’ - as he hailed one of the club’s coaching staff for a huge role in their victory over Freiburg.
Villa ended a 30 year wait for a trophy thanks to stunning first half goals from Youri Tielemans and Emi Buendia - before Morgan Rogers sealed the win in the second half.
It was a cagey opening 40 minutes before Villa went on to run away with the game - and Watkins explained how they ‘punished’ the German side in a comfortable win.
And he also reserved special praise for Villa’s set piece coach Austin MacPhee, whose stock has been rising during his time at the club for his growing influence.
It was a well worked corner routine that led to Tielemans goal as Villa finally breached Freiburg’s rear guard in Istanbul and Watkins said: “It is amazing, to perform like that was unbelievable.
“We really controlled the game, we punished them in the end.
“I’ve watched many finals and set pieces are crucial.
“Until then it was cagey. We worked an unbelievable set piece, fair play for Austin (MacPhee).
“We left four up on a corner as well at one point.
“It is an unbelievable experience, it is all you dream of.”
The scenes in Istanbul were a far cry from Villa’s situation back in September - where a dreadful start to the campaign saw them in the Premier League relegation zone.
But in a remarkable turnaround - Villa have returned to the Champions League and picked up their first trophy in three decades, all in the space of a few days.
Watkins explained now an unusually calm Unai Emery set the tone for Villa’s display.
He said: “We’ve had ups and downs but we have pulled through in the end, we’ve pushed on to Champions League football.
“This is so special with all the fans, it is indescribable.
“He (Emery) was really calm today. In the build up he can sometimes be a bit anxious in Premier League games because he really wants to win.
“But he was calming and it set the tone for us. Youri (Tielemans) ran it, and Victor (Lindelof) played so well, shout out to him.”
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