A mere 60 days in the past that the Villa attacker found himself on the Sunderland turf, seeming perplexed while his coach berated him for missing a pass in behind. At that point, as Villa failed to win in six, doubts remained if his displays were a sign or a cause for Villa's more general malaise.
“When Rogers netted his second… Emery tore off his coat, threw his arms wide, and bellowed in delight.”
In the latest match, though, the touchline reaction proved to be much more joyous. When Rogers swept in his brace-sealing goal to reclaim the lead for Villa, the Spanish tactician tore off his winter coat, spread his arms and roared. The Birmingham club continued to a tenth straight victory , despite not winning any of their first six matches, now sit only three points off pace-setters Arsenal.
Is Aston Villa Legitimate Hopefuls?
It remains a particularly tough proposition to answer. Past precedent, a general sense of Villa, indicates otherwise. Moreover, they've rarely been completely commanding during this run, even as the positive results have piled up.
As per the data, twice all season have Villa posted an xG more than 0.5 greater than their opponents. For a club that have strung together a ten-match winning streak, the Villans look strangely fragile – however at the moment the fine lines are going in their favour.
The Reliant Strategy
The current approach appears to be to engage in a shootout with rivals and wait for Rogers to bail them out with a couple of clinical strikes. This occurred away to Leeds, it happened in London, and it happened against United.
Rogers' first goal stemmed from an exquisite effort, bent precisely inside the upright from the corner of the box. His brace-completing goal proved to be a slightly less clean iteration of goal number one capitalizing on an Ollie Watkins lay-off.
“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.”
Is It Sustainable?
Logic says not. Against United, the opposition had more shots and more efforts on goal. They have won each of their last eight by just one goal. They’ve conceded in all but one of those matches.
A reversion to average could be the biggest rival the club will encounter as the season progresses. Rogers, surely, cannot keep on blasting his shots into the net's top corner week in, week out.
A Case for Belief
Maybe there exists an alternative path in which, instead of luck running out, the level of play rises to match the results. Important figures might still find their top level.
- The main striker might resume finding the net regularly.
- Jadon Sancho might become the force he showed during his peak.
- The injured centre-backs will eventually regain fitness, fortifying a sometimes shaky defensive unit.
Maybe within that lies the possibility for a sustained push, yet it seems unlikely can continue to depend solely on one man.
Enjoying the Ride
Yet, this was unforeseen. Few believed Aston Villa would be third at Christmas. And most definitely two months ago, nobody thought Rogers by the end of the year would be at the forefront of a hunt for the title and appearing as an essential player for the national team.
This winning streak should be enjoyed precisely because it seems so surreal. When Rogers stood in front of the North End when the game ended orchestrating the applause, it was clear to be thoroughly enjoying it. Which he fully merits. Such periods do not happen often and ought to be celebrated.
