Morgan Rogers' Scoring Streak Fuels The Villans' Unlikely Title Charge

It was 60 days in the past when the young forward was standing on the Stadium of Light pitch, seeming perplexed while the Villa manager berated him over not reading a through-ball. At that point, as the club went six without a win, the question was whether his displays were a symptom or the source for the team's more general malaise.

On Sunday, however, the manager's outburst was much more joyous. As the England international curled home his second strike to reinstate his side's advantage, Emery ripped off his coat, opened his arms and bellowed. Villa marched on to ten wins in a row and having failed to win any of their first six games, now sit a mere three points adrift of the leaders Arsenal.

Are They Genuine Hopefuls?

It remains a rather hard query to resolve. Past precedent, a general sense of the club, suggests not. Additionally, their performances haven't been entirely convincing this season, even as the wins have stacked up.

Per the data, on just two occasions have Villa registered an expected goals figure more than 0.5 greater than the opposition. For a side that have put together 10 in a row, they seem strangely fragile – but at the moment the margins are falling their way.

The Winning Formula

The current approach appears to be to engage in a shootout with the opposition before hoping their talisman to rescue them with a couple of clinical strikes. This was the case away to Leeds, it transpired against West Ham, and once more against United.

His opener came from a superb shot, bent just inside the goal frame from the corner of the box. For his second was essentially a somewhat messier replica of goal number one capitalizing on a pass from Watkins.

Is It Sustainable?

Common sense dictates no. During the latest victory, the opponents registered more shots and more efforts on goal. Villa have secured their last eight victories by just one goal. They’ve conceded in all but one of those games.

A statistical correction might be the greatest opponent the club will encounter in the near future. Rogers, almost certainly, cannot keep on blasting the ball into the net's top corner indefinitely.

Potential for Growth

Could it be an alternative path whereby, rather than results trending towards performances, the level of play rises to match the results. Key players might still rediscover their best form.

• Ollie Watkins may begin to finding the net regularly.
• Jadon Sancho might become the player he showed in Germany.
• Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres will eventually come back from the treatment room, fortifying a sometimes shaky defence.

This could contain the seeds for a sustained push, but they surely can continue to depend solely on one man.

Relishing the Unlikely

But then, this was unforeseen. Few believed Villa would sit third at Christmas. And certainly back in October, nobody thought Rogers by the end of the year would be leading a title charge and appearing as a crucial England player.

This remarkable period must be cherished precisely because it feels so unlikely. When the match-winner positioned himself before the home supporters after the match orchestrating the applause, it was clear to be relishing every moment. Which he fully merits. Such periods are uncommon in the sport and ought to be celebrated.