It was 60 days in the past that the Villa attacker stood on the pitch at Sunderland, seeming perplexed as the Villa manager scolded him for failing to anticipate a penetrating pass. During that period, as the club went six without a win, doubts remained if his displays were a sign or the reason of Villa's wider issues.
“As Rogers swept in his second… Emery ripped off his thick padded coat, spread his arms and roared.”
This weekend, in contrast, the sideline response was far more favourable. After the in-form star curled home his brace-sealing goal to restore Villa's lead, the boss discarded his winter coat, threw his arms wide and roared. The team were on their way to a tenth straight victory , after failing to win their opening six games, find themselves a mere three points off pace-setters Arsenal.
Is This Team Legitimate Title Contenders?
It remains a rather hard proposition to address. History, the traditional standing of Villa, argues against it. Additionally, their performances haven't been wholly dominant in many games, even as the wins have stacked up.
As per Opta, in only two games has the team registered an expected goals figure notably superior than their opponents. For a club which has put together ten consecutive victories, Villa look weirdly vulnerable – but at the moment the tight outcomes are going in their favour.
The Reliant Strategy
The prevailing tactic appears to be to exchange chances with rivals and wait for their star man to bail them out with two crisp finishes. It happened away to Leeds, it happened against West Ham, and it happened versus United.
The initial strike originated from a brilliant finish, arced just inside the goal frame from the edge of the area. The follow-up goal acted as a slightly less clean iteration of goal number one capitalizing on a setup by his strike partner.
“Much like Robben with his left, Rogers’ right foot has become a known threat that remains brutally unstoppable, regardless of anticipation.”
Can It Last?
Common sense dictates no. During the latest victory, Manchester United managed more efforts and more shots on target. The team has won each of their last eight by a single goal. They have allowed goals in nearly all of those fixtures.
A reversion to average might be the most significant challenge Villa must confront as the season progresses. Rogers, in all likelihood, cannot keep on blasting his shots into the net's top corner week in, week out.
A Case for Belief
Could it be a different scenario where, instead of results trending towards performances, performances begin to trend towards results. Vital cogs could still find their top level.
- The centre-forward might resume finding the net regularly.
- The winger may rediscover the force he resembled in Germany.
- Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres will eventually come back from the treatment room, strengthening a sometimes shaky defence.
Perhaps there is in that the seeds of a genuine bid, however, it is improbable can persist in leaning entirely on a single individual.
Savoring the Moment
But then, this was unforeseen. It seemed improbable Aston Villa would be in the top three for the holidays. And most definitely back in October, no one envisioned the midfielder as the year closed would be leading a title charge while looking like a crucial Three Lions star.
The current run must be cherished exactly since it seems so surreal. As the hero faced the Villa faithful at the final whistle leading the celebrations, he appeared to be relishing every moment. As he deserves to. Such periods are rare in football and ought to be celebrated.
