English striker who rose from non-league football to become a Premier League regular and England international, scoring the dramatic semi-final winner at Euro 2
Oliver Bernard Watkins was born in Torquay, England in 1995. He developed through the lower leagues — Exeter City and Brentford — before Aston Villa paid £28 million for him. His four Villa seasons have produced consistent 20-plus goal returns. He represented England 24 times. He scored the 90th-minute goal against the Netherlands in the Euro 2024 semi-final — coming off the bench and scoring within two minutes of entering the pitch to send England to his second consecutive European Championship final. The goal was England's most celebrated individual moment in a European Championship since Paul Gascoigne's Euro 96 goal against Scotland. His combination of pressing intensity, intelligent movement and clinical finishing from both feet and his head makes him one of the Premier League's most complete modern centre-forwards. His development arc — from League One at Exeter through the Championship at Brentford to international footballer — is English football's most complete lower-league-to-top-flight success story of the decade.
Scoring winning goal in Euro 2024 semi-final vs Netherlands
How They Played
Pacey striker with clinical finishing and intelligent movement in the box
Lasting Impact
Watkins represents the modern pathway from lower-league football to international recognition through consistent development and hard work.
Career Honours
- Championship (2020)
- Premier League (regular)
- Euro runner-up (England 2024)
- Championship 2021
| Club | Period | Fee | Apps | Goals | Shirt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exeter City | 2014–2017 | — | 78 | 32 | #11 |
| Brentford | 2017–2020 | — | 143 | 49 | — |
| Aston Villa | 2020–2024 | £28m | 152 | 59 | — |
| Weston-super-Mare | 2014–2014 | — | 11 | 3 | — |
 England | — | — | 24 | 7 | — |