ESPN

Sep 2, 2026, 06:50 AM ET

Ollie Watkins marked his Al Hilal debut with a goal in the 3-0 win over Al Ahli in the Saudi Pro League -- then insisted his new surroundings are "Premier League quality."

The England international, who joined from Aston Villa, came off the bench in the second half and scored with a back post header in the closing stages.

Sergej Savić had opened the scoring for Al Hilal before former West Ham United forward Crysencio Summerville doubled their lead.

Watkins departed Villa after six years at the club, where he scored 108 goals in 278 games. He was an integral member of the side that lifted the Europa League last season.

His departure was one of many at Villa this summer, with Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Ezri Konsa and Lucas Digne also leaving the club. However, Watkins is the only one who exited for a team outside Europe.

"The level I saw here today was honestly of Premier League quality," Watkins said after scoring. "The match was very strong physically and demanding, and the quality was extremely high.

"I knew straight away [to join Al Hilal when the offer came]. I watched the [FIFA] Club World Cup and I saw how well they performed. I always see who's at the top of the league and they're always up there.

"And look, I want to come here. I want to win trophies and I think this team is going to give me the best possible chance of doing that."

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He added: "I want to score in every game.

"But I kept going, kept going, and I'm going to get a lot of chances. Ruben [Neves] and Serge [Milinkovic-Savic] are very intelligent players and all I need to do is make the run.

"I'm a bit rusty at the moment, only had a couple of days training so, once I get in the groove, I'm going to be good."

That's the objective. Obviously just before [my goal] I got called offside, which was disappointing.

Villa remain winless in the Premier League this season after being beaten 1-0 by Arsenal on Monday.