Morgan Rogers set for surprise Aston Villa start v Sheff Utd after Emery update
With the January transfer window shut and the Premier League set to get back underway, Aston Villa are getting ready to make the trip to Sheffield United.
Unai Emery’s side are looking to bounce back from a humbling 3-1 defeat to Newcastle United last time out and are in search of their first Premier League win since December. They could only manage a draw with the Blades last time out, but they have a secret weapon up their sleeve.
Villa didn’t make too many signings in the January transfer window, but their biggest addition was Morgan Rogers from Middlesbrough, with the former West Brom academy star making the switch from the Riverside to Villa Park.
The 21-year-old could well be thrown straight into Emery’s starting XI for the trip to Bramall Lane on Saturday (3 February) after the Spaniard hinted that he is more than ready to make an immediate impact on Villa’s side.
As quoted by Fabrizio Romano on X (3 February) he said: “His potential is big, really big”. “We added one player in the squad who can play as an 8, a 10 or sometimes as a striker. His skills will be important for us, he’s ready to play.”
Rogers could reignite Champions League push for Aston Villa
Rogers’ final outing in a Middlesbrough shirt came in the Carabao Cup against Chelsea and even though the Blues dominated the clash, the versatile forward showed he was more than able to pose a threat against Premier League opposition.
The 21-year-old completed 73 per cent of his 15 attempted passes, had two shots on target and even managed to score Boro’s only goal in the tie, with an excellent right-footed effort from the edge of the box which only possessed an xG of 0.02 [stats via Fotmob].
Off of the ball, Villa’s newest signing showed that he is more than willing to get stuck in, winning 100 per cent of his two attempted tackles and entering a huge 17 duels both in the air and on the ground.
In Middlesbrough’s win over Millwall earlier in January, Rogers demonstrated just how much of a threat he could be creatively as well, playing four passes into the final third, all of which created a goalscoring chance for a teammate and even managed to register five touches in the opposition box.
The Aston Villa forward was one of the Championship’s best progresses of the ball in the first half of the season, completing more progressive passes per 90 minutes than 89 per cent of his positional peers, with an average of 5.5 a game, according to Fbref.
Rogers should fit into Emery’s style perfectly as sits in the 99th percentile for through balls played per match and the 96th for key passes per 90 minutes. That should make him the perfect foil for Ollie Watkins.
Whether Emery will throw the 21-year-old in from the off on Saturday remains to be seen, but if Rogers is able to transform his form from the Championship into the Premier League, he’ll set the division alight without a doubt.
Hopefully, he can get off to the perfect start at Bramall Lane and help Aston Villa get back to winning ways in the Premier League.
In other Aston Villa news, Alan Hutton was baffled by last-minute transfer speculation surrounding Jacob Ramsey and Newcastle
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