Ollie Watkins latest as Aston Villa weigh up Nicolas Jackson and Tammy Abraham options

Ollie Watkins' future has been one of those subjects that's quietly bubbled away in the background for much of the summer, but Jacob Tanswell provided the strongest update yet on the latest episode of 1874, revealing that Fenerbahçe are pushing hard to sign Aston Villa's striker.

There's no suggestion Villa are actively looking to sell Watkins and this isn't a transfer that's on the verge of happening, but when a club starts making a serious play for one of your best players it's always worth taking notice, particularly during a summer where Villa have already had to make some big decisions. 

You also have to factor in agents, and the role they play in transfers and what their interests might be given the stage of Watkins' career.

Speaking on the podcast, Tanswell explained that any move would ultimately come down to Watkins himself.

"Fenerbahçe are strongly interested in Ollie Watkins. They're pushing quite hard for him and I think it'll be a decision up to the player. The player will only leave if he considers the team he's going to a better opportunity. I take that how you will, whether that's financially or whether that's on the pitch."

It feels like a measured way of looking at it. Clubs are always going to be interested in players of Watkins' quality and there aren't too many strikers around who have delivered as consistently as he has over the last few seasons. If Villa are going to compete at the top end of the Premier League and in the Champions League, they're going to have to get used to their best players attracting interest.

What was just as interesting, though, was where the conversation went next because it became pretty clear that Villa have spent the summer preparing for every possible scenario.

Nicolas Jackson is a player we've spoken about plenty over the last few weeks and, despite Villa bringing Alejandro Garnacho through the door and continuing to work on strengthening other areas of the squad, Tanswell made it clear the Chelsea striker remains someone they admire.

"Nicolas Jackson, Villa like him. Emery's maintained regular dialogue with him. Let's not rule that out."

It's one thing for a club to admire a player from afar, but when the manager is maintaining regular dialogue with him, it tells you the relationship has never really gone away. Emery knows Jackson from their time together at Villarreal, understands exactly what he can bring and clearly still believes there's a player there.

The obvious question is how Villa could possibly make a deal happen.

Chelsea are unlikely to let him leave cheaply and Villa's financial position has been well documented throughout the summer. Add in the structure of the Garnacho deal and, on the face of it, it doesn't look like an easy transfer to complete.

Tanswell admitted he'd asked exactly the same question.

"How do they do it? I've put this to multiple people. The reply I keep getting is both clubs are very creative."

I actually smiled when he said that because it feels like one of those classic transfer answers. It doesn't tell you exactly how a deal could be structured, but it does tell you Villa haven't given up on the idea and neither, it seems, have Chelsea.

I've said before that Jackson is someone I'd like Villa to sign if the opportunity presented itself. I know opinions are mixed because his time at Chelsea hasn't always gone to plan, but Emery has already shown throughout his time at Villa that he backs himself to improve players and get more out of them than others have managed. Jackson feels like someone who fits into that category.

The final striker mention from Tanswell was Tammy Abraham, whose own future at Villa also appears to be one worth keeping an eye on over the final few weeks of the transfer window.

Villa have looked at several different scenarios in the striker department over the course of the summer and, while Watkins remains the club's number one option, it wouldn't be a surprise if there was still movement before the window closes, particularly if serious interest develops from elsewhere.

For me, the key takeaway from the conversation wasn't that Watkins is about to leave Aston Villa because I don't think that's where we are. It was more that Villa have clearly done what good recruitment teams should do. They've identified different outcomes, they've kept relationships alive with players they admire and they've made sure they aren't caught cold if the transfer market suddenly throws them a curveball.

That's exactly what this window has been like. Things change incredibly quickly and we've seen that with several of Villa's deals already. Hopefully Watkins is still leading the line when the season starts, but if the situation changes, it certainly sounds as though Villa won't be scrambling around looking for a solution at the last minute.