Unai Emery says Ollie Watkins will have to get used to Jhon Duran breathing down his neck.
Aston Villa’s boss said he was happy with his options up front but says that without the young Colombian during the early part of the season, their club’s form would have suffered.
Watkins was given the nod ahead of Harry Kane by interim boss Lee Carsley during England’s outing in Greece last week. But his commitments during the summer with the Three Lions delayed a return to the goalscoring form of last year.
Watkins has collected one goal in eight for Villa with Duran catching the eye with a string of cameo performances off the bench. And Emery says that his spearhead needs to be hardened for the battle for his spot.
He said: “Watkins is very important for us. Circumstances can change because we are building the team with two players for each position to be competitive and to perform.
“Maybe the process we had two years ago was different with Watkins and Jhon Duran. We’ve increased our levels through those two players. They have to accept that there is two players competing for one position.
“And if performing at a high level that is, for me, positive. Watkins has to accept and he has to adapt quickly to his new position.
“He needed time to get fit and confident again like last year and we needed Duran helping him, in the last 30 minutes, scoring goals. If we didn’t have Jhon helping like he did at that time maybe we wouldn’t have the points we have now.
“This is the most important thing, the team, the squad, the players, the team-mates. Always a commitment to help.
“Sometimes we have to manage differently, the players have to accept that with the new circumstances I am trying always to get the best situation.”
Villa next welcome Crystal Palace to Villa Park as they bid to bounce back from three Premier League matches without a win. The Eagles have already tasted victory against Emery’s side in the Carabao Cup.
Aston Villa nevertheless sit ninth in the division and are just a single point away from third-placed Chelsea. Palace meanwhile are 11 points behind and lie in the relegation zone after 11 matches.
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