Ollie Watkins has opened up about the challenges Aston Villa faced after a grueling schedule, following their 2-2 draw against already-relegated Burnley at Turf Moor.

Unai Emery's squad came tantalizingly close to leapfrogging Liverpool into fourth place—a move that would have all but secured Champions League football next season. Instead, they walked away with just a point, leaving their top-four hopes hanging in the balance.

The match started disastrously for Villa, as Jaidon Anthony fired Burnley ahead within the first eight minutes. But the visitors showed resilience, with Ross Barkley leveling the score before Watkins himself struck early in the second half to give Villa the lead. However, the joy was short-lived as Zian Flemming equalized for Burnley, denying Villa a crucial victory.

This result extends a worrying trend for Emery's men—just one win in their last five Premier League outings, and no away league victory since January. For a team chasing Champions League glory, that's a stat that stings.

Watkins didn't shy away from pointing to the physical toll of the club's midweek Europa League semi-final exertions. Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, the striker explained: "It was a valuable point. If you can’t win, then don’t lose. Our away form hasn’t been where we want it—we haven’t won away since around January at Newcastle."

He added: "We’ve done amazing to get to this position with our home form, so we can’t be too picky. It’s unfortunate we couldn’t see it out after leading. You have to dig in and leave it all out there in Europe, but now we’ve got time to rest and recover. The big midweek performance against Nottingham Forest left everyone tired, and a short turnaround wasn’t ideal."

For Aston Villa, the race for the top four is far from over, but they'll need to find their away form—and a bit more recovery time—to cross the finish line.