Former Exeter City academy graduate Ollie Watkins has been called up as a replacement for the England squad. The Aston Villa striker was initially left out of manager Gareth Southgate’s squad for the upcoming friendlies with Switzerland and Ivory Coast.
But after Tammy Abraham was withdrawn through injury, the England manager recalled the 26-year-old from the scrum. Watkins joins Crystal Palace full-back Tyrick Mitchell and Southampton defender Kyle Walker-Peters, who received their first senior England call-ups, as well as West Brom goalkeeper Sam Johnstone who was chosen for the team .
In addition to Abraham, Aaron Ramsdale, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James have retired. England host Switzerland on Saturday before facing Ivory Coast on Tuesday with the two friendlies at Wembley. Watkins, who grew up close to Newton Abbot, has already won five caps for his country, scoring one goal. Watkins has scored seven goals for Villa this season in 27 appearances.
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And his call-up could potentially be good news for Exeter City if the former Greek steps onto the pitch. Exeter City FC are receiving 15% of any potential extra payment to Brentford from Aston Villa as part of the additions agreed when he left St James Park in 2017 to join the Bees.
The Devon side would collect £75,000 if Watkins were to be named in the starting line-up, or £37,500 if he were to be replaced. The Greeks have so far secured £412,500 in bonuses out of a maximum of £750,000 they can receive.
With Villa currently ninth in the Premier League table and all but certain, barring a dramatic and shocking turnaround, to stay in the top flight, and therefore more money will flow to City. The Greeks will receive a £150,000 bonus if Villa avoid relegation, a payment which you believe will arrive in the bank account in the coming months.
Potential complements
£1m per competitive appearance in England (of which £150,000 goes to Exeter City)
£500,000 as a sub (£75,000 in Exeter City)
£500,000 for a ‘friendly’ departure (£75,000 for Exeter City)
£250,000 as a “friend” sub (£37,500 in Exeter City)
£1m a year for Aston Villa remaining in the Premier League (£150,000 for Exeter City)
Aston Villa’s maximum total payout cap at Brentford is £5m (a maximum of £750,000 for Exeter City)
The Greeks have so far secured £412,500 in bonuses.
Former City youth product Ethan Ampadu has been named to the Wales squad again. Wales will face Austria in a World Cup semi-final on Thursday, before playing a friendly on Tuesday night.
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