Aston Villa gem Morgan Rogers won’t have impressed Unai Emery with England U21s display
Morgan Rogers has been one of the surprises that have emerged from Aston Villa this season.
The 2024/25 campaign will be the first time that the club have played in the Champions League and Unai Emery bolstered Villa’s ranks as he saw fit across the course of the summer transfer window.
The attacker was signed last season from Middlesbrough and has shone for Emery’s side in the Premier League thus far.
So much so that the attacker was called up to England’s under-21s squad to play against Northern Ireland under-21s.
While many thought he’d be one of the standout players on the pitch, the 22-year-old didn’t have the best of times in the goalless draw.
Morgan Rogers needs to refind his form if he wants to play for Aston Villa
One game can’t be the judge of how well a player has played all season and one game shouldn’t decide whether or not a player is axed from the squad.
Rogers’ performance against Northern Ireland under-21s, however, was underwhelming. The former Middlesbrough man failed to register a shot on target, with one hit off-target and two efforts blocked (Sofascore).
Alongside his few efforts on goal, of the six dribbles the Villa man attempted, only two of them managed to be completed.
The striker only had 46 touches of the ball throughout the entirety of the clash which means that his passing numbers weren’t up to much either.
Of the 25 passes that were attempted, only 76 per cent were accurate and just one was deemed worthy of being called a key pass.
To make matters worse for the youngster, he even managed to miss one big chance which would have likely won his side the game.
Despite his poor performance, his form for the Villans has been stellar.
He hasn’t yet managed to bag any goals but the fact that he’s started all three of Villa’s top-flight games shows how much faith Emery has in the youngster.
While the game against Northern Ireland’s under-21s won’t define where Rogers’ season goes from here, it could certainly give Emery a concern as the campaign really cranks into gear in the next few weeks.
In other Aston Villa news, the club had been on the brink of a Premier League points deduction just hours before their PSR deadline.
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