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A mere 60 days in the past that Morgan Rogers was standing on the Stadium of Light pitch, seeming perplexed while the Villa manager admonished him for failing to anticipate a pass in behind. At that point, as the club endured a six-game winless run, it wasn't clear if his performances were a sign or the reason for the side's more general malaise.

“When Rogers netted his second… Emery tore off his coat, threw his arms wide, and bellowed in delight.”

On Sunday, however, the sideline response proved to be far more favourable. When the in-form star swept in his second strike to restore the lead for Villa, Emery discarded his winter coat, opened his arms and shouted in triumph. The team marched on to a tenth straight victory and after failing to win any of their first six fixtures, now sit only three points adrift of table-toppers Arsenal.

Is Aston Villa Genuine Challengers?

This is an exceptionally difficult query to address. History, the traditional standing of the club, indicates otherwise. Furthermore, their performances haven't been wholly dominant during this run, while the wins have piled up.

According to Opta, twice all season has the side posted an expected goals figure notably superior than the other team. For a club which has put together ten consecutive victories, they seem weirdly vulnerable – yet currently the fine lines are swinging for them.

The Winning Formula

The current approach seems to be to trade blows with the opposition and wait for their talisman to rescue them with a couple of crisp finishes. This occurred away to Leeds, it transpired against West Ham, and again versus United.

His opener came from an exquisite effort, bent right inside the post from the corner of the box. The follow-up goal acted as a slightly less clean iteration of his first capitalizing on a setup by his strike partner.

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

Can It Last?

Logic says not. During the latest victory, Manchester United managed more efforts and more efforts on goal. They have secured their last eight victories by a single goal. The defence has been breached in all but one of those fixtures.

Regression to the mean may well be the biggest rival the club will encounter in the near future. The forward, almost certainly, cannot keep on blasting the ball past despairing goalkeepers forever.

Reasons for Optimism

Maybe there exists a different scenario in which, instead of luck running out, performances begin to trend towards results. Important figures might still return to peak condition.

• The main striker may begin to scoring again.
• The winger might become the performer he showed at Borussia Dortmund.
• The injured centre-backs are set to come back from the treatment room, strengthening a periodically leaky backline.

Maybe within that lies the seeds of a genuine bid, yet it seems unlikely can persist in leaning entirely on a single individual.

Relishing the Unlikely

However, this is a surprise. Few believed Villa would occupy in a Champions League place in December. And most definitely earlier this season, nobody thought the young forward now would be at the forefront of a hunt for the title while establishing himself as a vital England player.

This remarkable period is to be savoured precisely because it seems so surreal. When Rogers positioned himself before the North End after the match leading the celebrations, it was clear to be relishing every moment. As he deserves to. These spells are uncommon in the sport and should be relished.