John McGinn suggests £21m player is now Aston Villa’s new penalty taker after Ollie Watkins’ miss vs Bologna

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John McGinn has suggested that a different member of the Aston Villa squad is the new penalty taker following Ollie Watkins’ miss against Bologna.

Aston Villa won their first game of the season in the Europa League this week, and it was McGinn’s first-half goal that secured the 1-0 win for his team.

However, Watkins did have the opportunity to extend the lead in the 67th minute from the penalty spot, only for his lacklustre effort to go straight down the middle.

His shot was comfortably saved, which pressured his teammates to continue defending the slender lead. While they managed to do that, changes are afoot at Villa Park.

John McGinn reveals Donyell Malen is Aston Villa’s new penalty taker

Aston Villa scored just three goals all season, with only one in the Premier League, as Unai Emery’s men have struggled drastically in the attacking areas.

The penalty miss was a frustrating situation for everyone involved, but McGinn told Aston Villa’s media team that Watkins is no longer the first-choice penalty taker when Donyell Malen is on the pitch.

“I’ve gone down the list after the Brentford one. Donyell was meant to take it, but he was off the pitch, so Ollie was next in line as the striker. It’s something we need to eradicate and get better at.”

Troy Deeney felt Watkins’ run-up was weird heading into the penalty, as he wasn’t impressed by his technique when rewatching it.

Evidently, Aston Villa are looking to address the penalty situation by allowing Malen to take over moving forward whenever he is on the pitch, placing pressure on the £21million man.

Ollie Watkins is undergoing a dry spell at Aston Villa

Watkins’ penalty miss against Bologna was the latest moment in a frustrating period for the England international in front of goal.

The Aston Villa striker is currently on a nine-game run without a goal, which is starting to concern supporters.

It has led to Watkins coming under fire from pundits, as Ian Wright admitted he wants more from him after all the promise he’s shown in recent years.

Paul Scholes claimed Watkins “isn’t quite right” at the moment either, as the pressure continues to mount on the forward to refind the form that had him being linked with moves to Arsenal and Man United.