Pressing Issues

• Aston Villa’s most promising youngster has signed a contract extension which will see him stay at Villa Park until 2030.
• Unai Emery made the forward his priority signing in January, after he impressed for Middlesbrough in their FA Cup defeat to Villa last season.
• Having been sold by Manchester City for just £1 million, take a look at Rogers’ journey to becoming a key player for Villa and a recent England selection.

How Did Rogers End Up at Villa?

Rogers’ Middlesbrough career was short but sweet. After signing from Manchester City in July 2023, he racked up 8 g/a across 26 appearances – and only 14 starts.

Unai Emery’s Aston Villa would then visit the Riverside in January, and despite Boro facing a 1-0 loss on the night, Rogers’ dynamism, forward runs and ball progression caught the eye of the Spanish manager.

Even after three bids were rejected, Emery was adamant that Rogers was the man they needed to strengthen their forward line. On the fourth time of asking, a fee of £8 million (potentially rising to £15 million) was agreed.

A Rocky Start

Rogers would make his Villa debut with a 10 minute cameo as a substitute in a Premier League fixture against Sheffield United. This would be the story of the 22-year-old’s first month at Villa.

It would be Villa’s visit to Luton Town which would present an opportunity for Rogers to get some significant minutes. Fellow Englishman Jacob Ramsey was forced off with an injury early on, and Rogers was Emery’s trusted replacement. He would produce a confident performance with 2 successful dribbles and 2 key passes in a game Villa would win 3-2.

Following this, Rogers would start 3 of Villa’s next 4 games: two against Ajax in the Europa Conference League, and a 1-1 Premier League draw with West Ham United. But he was still yet to get his first goal or assist for Villa.

Finding Form

Rogers’ first Villa goal would come in a dramatic 3-3 at home to Brentford, as the youngster pulled off a wonderful turn inside the box to find space for a shot.

He would go on to pick up 3 more goals and assists in the final month of the season.

In Emery’s Plans

During pre-season, Rogers started almost every game as Emery’s men prepared to take on the challenge of balancing Premier League and Champions League football. He picked up 3 goals across 7 pre-season games, and was continuously showing attacking threat.

Across the season’s first 6 games, Rogers wouldn’t register a goal or assist, but did put in a number of notable performances – particularly against Arsenal in the Premier League and Bayern Munich in the Champions League. Rogers’ aforementioned dynamism and directness was causing problems for every defence he faced, and Emery maintained that things would start falling his way soon.

He picked up 2 assists against Wolves and a goal against Ipswich Town to get his season’s tally going, and since then has added 3 goals to his tally in the Premier League this season.

Having clearly repaid the faith placed upon him by Unai Emery, Rogers’ realisation of his talent has earned him an England call up in the past week, and today he finds himself with a 6 year contract extension, to take his Villa contract to 2030.

While the rise of Rogers has been remarkable so far, it remains to be seen whether he can achieve more – but it is clear that he has the ability to do so.