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It was two months prior when the Villa attacker found himself on the Stadium of Light pitch, looking confused as the Villa manager admonished him over missing a penetrating pass. During that period, as the club endured a six-game winless run, doubts remained whether Rogers' form were a symptom or a cause for the team'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, in contrast, the manager's outburst proved to be far more favourable. After the England international drilled in his second to reclaim his side's advantage, the Spanish tactician ripped off his winter coat, threw his arms wide and roared. Villa continued to a tenth straight victory , despite not winning any of their first six matches, find themselves only three points adrift of the leaders Arsenal.

Is This Team Serious Challengers?

That’s a rather hard query to answer. History, the traditional standing of Villa, suggests not. Moreover, their performances haven't been wholly dominant during this run, despite the fact the wins have accumulated.

Per the data, twice all season has the team registered an expected goals figure more than 0.5 greater than the opposition. For a club who have strung together 10 in a row, they seem weirdly vulnerable – however right now the tight outcomes are swinging for them.

The Winning Formula

The current approach appears to be to trade blows with the opposition and then rely on their star man to rescue them with a couple of crisp finishes. This was the case at Leeds, it transpired at West Ham, and once more against United.

His opener came from a brilliant finish, curled precisely inside the upright from the edge of the area. The follow-up goal acted as a slightly less clean iteration of the opener capitalizing on a pass from Watkins.

“Rogers’ right foot is now akin to Robben’s legendary left: forewarned does not mean forearmed, and stopping him is another matter entirely.”

How Long Can This Continue?

Logic says not. During the latest victory, the opponents registered a greater number of attempts and more shots on target. Villa have secured their last eight victories by just one goal. They’ve conceded in all but one of those matches.

A reversion to average might be the most significant challenge the club must confront over the coming weeks. Their key man, almost certainly, cannot maintain drilling the ball into the net's top corner week in, week out.

Reasons for Optimism

Could it be a different scenario in which, instead of outcomes regressing to match displays, the level of play rises to match the results. Vital cogs might still return to peak condition.

• The centre-forward might resume finding the net regularly.
• The winger may rediscover the force he was during his peak.
• Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres are set to regain fitness, strengthening an occasionally vulnerable defence.

Maybe within that lies the seeds of a title challenge, however, it is improbable can continue to depend solely on Morgan Rogers.

Relishing the Unlikely

However, nobody expected this. Nobody thought the team would be in the top three for the holidays. And most definitely back in October, few could imagine the young forward by the end of the year would be at the forefront of a championship pursuit and appearing as a crucial player for the national team.

The current run must be cherished exactly since it appears so improbable. As the hero stood in front of the North End at the final whistle leading the celebrations, he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying it. A feeling he has rightly earned. Such periods are rare in football and should be relished.