Unai Emery may be forced to drop Aston Villa regular, it’s best for the team
Aston Villa have yet to find the back of the net after their opening four Premier League matches.
Villa were fortunate to draw 0-0 with Everton over the weekend, with Unai Emery’s men being second best for large portions of the contest.
Emi Martinez was arguably Villa’s best player during the game, with Tim Sherwood being impressed with Martinez’s performance in his first match back in the team after the ongoing speculation around his future.
However, with the majority of Emery’s side looking like shells of their former selves, the Spanish manager may decide to drop one of his key players before they take on Brentford in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.
Unai Emery could drop Morgan Rogers vs Brentford
Despite some of Rogers’ recent performances for England being praised, it has been a far cry from that every time Rogers has pulled on a Villa shirt so far this season.
His performance against Everton over the weekend was no exception, as the travelling supporters will surely have begun to wonder what has happened to their star man from last season.
With Villa being toothless in front of goal to begin the campaign, Rogers’ performance against Everton suggests that he does not look like he will provide the creative spark they need anytime soon.
- Villa’s chief playmaker from last season had a pass completion of 67% against Everton (14/21)
- Rogers had just 0.02 expected assists, confirming his lack of creativity
- Out of the four dribbles he attempted against Everton, none were successful
The Carabao Cup fixture against Brentford is the perfect opportunity for Emery to hand Harvey Elliott his first start in the number ten role and afford Rogers some valuable rest and time out of the spotlight.
How does Morgan Rogers’ data compare to last season?
This is not purely an overreaction based on one performance, but an accumulation of subpar matches for a player of Rogers’ obvious talents.
The data suggests that whilst all of the elements of Rogers’ game have deteriorated compared to last season, his ball carrying, which was often waxed lyrical about by onlookers last season, has particularly suffered.
Obviously, it’s still early days in the new season, but if these poor performances persist, then it could be time to ask Villa’s talisman serious questions.
If Rogers is replaced against Brentford by Elliott, for example, and the former Liverpool man performs, Rogers should be forced to earn his spot back into the team rather than purely being reinstated in the starting XI based on his reputation.
Enjoyed this article? Stay connected with all the latest Aston Villa news, updates, and behind-the-scenes content by following us on our new Instagram account – @villanews247