Much like his work with so many other Aston Villa players, Unai Emery’s magic is starting to reap rewards with Morgan Rogers too.
The 21-year-old was a priority transfer target in January, as the Villa boss and his scouting department had seen something in the talented youngster that made him stand out as a great fit for the squad that is being built.
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Countless other key players in this Villa group took time before we saw the best of them under Emery, and so the expectation was that patience and time would be needed with Rogers too.
While this is by no means to suggest that anyone in the Villa squad has hit their peak yet, and neither has Rogers, far from it. However, it’s been a welcome surprise to see the former Middlesbrough ace start to show positive signs already that he’s settling into his new surroundings and role.
Much has been said of the demands that Emery puts on his players, from a physical and tactical standpoint, in order for them to fully understand and adapt to the structure and style of play that he trying to build and implement.
Rogers though looks to be picking it up relatively quickly, as after providing his first assist in a Villa shirt for Jhon Duran’s goal at Man City in midweek, he followed that up with his first goal for the club against Brentford this weekend.
Having operated in two different roles in those two games, firstly more centrally before moving back to the left flank in the latter, he’s also shown versatility and flexibility in where he can be utilised, and it’s been an important boost in the second half of the season thus far.
Particularly so with Jacob Ramsey’s disrupted campaign being ended early by injury, as that has left a void that needed to be filled, and Rogers has done so admirably to date, albeit with plenty of room for improvement and development still to come.
His efforts on Saturday were overshadowed by the disappointment and frustration of not being able to see off Brentford and securing all three points, but having registered his first Villa goal and assist in the space of a week as he grows in the role of being a regular starter for Emery, hopefully this is just the beginning of what Rogers will produce for us.
A first goal in claret and blue for @Morgz_10. 🟣 pic.twitter.com/RvQTs0C7JK
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) April 6, 2024