Aston Villa fans had some fun at the expense of top scorer Ollie Watkins after picking up on his expression during their Champions League celebrations, even as some were sad to see him without a smile on his face.
Villa are assured of a top four finish thanks to Tottenham losing to Manchester City on Tuesday night. However, that result also means Arsenal - who Watkins has admitted to being a supporter of - saw their title hopes fade.
Arsenal now need a slip-up from City in their final league game to stand any chance of winning the title. However, Pep Guardiola's team are up against a West Ham side who have lost on each of their last seven trips to the Etihad Staidum.
Villa's players were all keeping tabs on the Spurs v City score during their end-of-season awards dinner on Tuesday night. The club shared a photo of Unai Emery and his squad celebrating, but some fans spotted Watkins appearing to be less delighted.
One fan showed a zoomed-in image of Watkins along with a screenshot of a Google search saying Watkins is an Arsenal supporter. "Watkins, this broke my heart seeing you like this," wrote another.
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"Your striker is an Arsenal fan and visibly not happy here," claimed another reply, but one had a different theory. "My man Watkins is there thinking of his Golden boot chances vanishing," they wrote.
Sure enough, Haaland's brace at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium all but ensures the Norwegian will end the season as the league's top scorer. Haaland now has 27 goals in the league, with Watkins down in equal fourth place with 19.
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Aston Villa's squad enjoyed themselves celebrating Champions League qualification (AVFCOfficial/X)
Some picked up on Watkins' expression not quite matching those of his team-matesBack in 2020, Watkins spoke of his desire to one day play for Arsenal. At the time, he was still playing Championship football for Brentford, but would make the step up to the Premier League with Villa.
“That’s the dream, to play for Arsenal one day," he told the Sports Gazette at the London Football Awards. "But, you know, it’s a long shot.
"I’m an Arsenal fan so Thierry Henry was my [idol] he’s unbelievable to watch," the former Exeter City striker added. "He was the idol growing up really.”
Watkins is enjoying the best goalscoring season of his career, with 27 in all competitions. Eight of those goals came in the Europa Conference League, where Villa made it all the way to the semi-finals before falling to Olympiacos.
His next target is a spot in England's squad for the upcoming European Championships. Watkins has three goals in 13 senior England appearances, most recently netting against Australia in a 2023 friendly.
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