Exeter City earn another Ollie Watkins windfall after he leaves Aston Villa

Ollie Watkins’ move from Aston Villa to Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal has delivered an extra FIFA windfall for Exeter City, with the Grecians set to receive between £1.75m and £2m from solidarity payments. Watkins completed a £50m transfer on Sunday, a week after he sat out Villa’s opening match of the season—a 4-0 home loss to Brighton. The England striker ends a six-year spell at Villa, where he became the club’s Premier League record scorer with 91 goals and helped win last season’s Europa League. Exeter’s academy training from age 11 to 21 (before the 2017 move to Brentford) underpins the payout.