A mere two months prior that the Villa attacker found himself on the Sunderland turf, appearing bewildered while Unai Emery scolded him for missing a penetrating pass. During that period, as Villa failed to win in six, the question was if Rogers' form were a sign or a cause of the team's wider issues.
“When Rogers netted his second… Emery tore off his coat, threw his arms wide, and bellowed in delight.”
On Sunday, however, the sideline response was entirely far more favourable. When Rogers drilled in his brace-sealing goal to restore Villa's lead, the boss discarded his jacket, opened his arms and roared. The team marched on to ten wins in a row and having failed to win their initial half-dozen matches, now sit a mere three points adrift of pace-setters Arsenal.
Is Aston Villa Legitimate Challengers?
It remains a rather hard query to resolve. History, a general sense of the club, suggests not. Additionally, their performances haven't been entirely convincing during this run, while the victories have accumulated.
Per the data, twice all season has the side had an expected goals figure more than 0.5 greater than the opposition. For a side who have put together ten consecutive victories, they seem weirdly vulnerable – but right now the fine lines are swinging for them.
The Winning Formula
The prevailing tactic looks like to exchange chances with rivals and wait for Rogers to bail them out with some precise efforts. It happened at Leeds, it transpired against West Ham, and once more when facing the Red Devils.
His opener originated from a brilliant finish, arced just inside the upright from the corner of the box. For his second acted as a slightly less clean iteration of goal number one as he pounced on a pass from Watkins.
“Perhaps Rogers’ right foot is becoming like Arjen Robben’s left: just because you know he’s going to whip the ball into the top corner doesn’t mean you can stop him.”
Can It Last?
Reason suggests otherwise. In the recent win, Manchester United managed more efforts and more efforts on goal. Villa have secured their last eight victories by just one goal. They have allowed goals in all but one of those fixtures.
A statistical correction could be the greatest opponent the club must confront over the coming weeks. Rogers, almost certainly, cannot maintain drilling his shots into the net's top corner indefinitely.
Reasons for Optimism
Could it be a different scenario where, instead of outcomes regressing to match displays, the team's displays improve to justify the wins. Vital cogs might still return to peak condition.
- The centre-forward may begin to adding to his goal tally.
- Jadon Sancho could transform into the force he was at Borussia Dortmund.
- The injured centre-backs are due to come back from the treatment room, bolstering a sometimes shaky defensive unit.
Perhaps there is in that the seeds of a genuine bid, but they surely can persist in leaning entirely on Morgan Rogers.
Savoring the Moment
However, this is a surprise. It seemed improbable the team would occupy third at Christmas. And certainly back in October, few could imagine Rogers by the end of the year would be at the forefront of a hunt for the title while establishing himself as a vital Three Lions star.
This remarkable period must be cherished precisely because it seems so surreal. When the match-winner positioned himself before the North End at the final whistle orchestrating the applause, he appeared to be loving the experience. Which he fully merits. These spells are rare in football and ought to be celebrated.
