Jamie Carragher says England star could destroy Arsenal’s title hopes | Football
Jamie Carragher hailed Morgan Rogers as a “special” talent after Aston Villa’s dramatic 3-2 win over West Ham, saying the midfielder is likely to be “key” if the club are to win the Premier League title.
Villa looked set to suffer their first defeat since early November after Mateus Fernandes and Jarrod Bowen found the net either side of Konstantinos Mavropanos’ own goal at the London Stadium on Sunday.
But the visitors came back into the contest in the second half, with Rogers keeping his cool to slot the ball past Alphonse Areola and equalize in the 50th minute.
Rogers, last season’s PFA Young Player of the Year, was not done with it, with the 23-year-old providing the game’s standout moment of quality to ensure Unai Emery’s men came away with all three points.
After being fed by Victor Lindelof, the England international took two touches before unleashing a diving strike from 25 yards to beat Areola and send Villa’s away support into a frenzy.
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Emery’s side held on to stay three points behind first-placed Arsenal, who survived a late scare to defeat Wolves on Saturday. Manchester City, meanwhile, retained second place after securing a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
Rumors of Villa being title outsiders have become increasingly louder in recent weeks, with the team enjoying a nine-game winning streak in all competitions ahead of their grueling winter schedule.
The Villains will look to pick up where they left off when they return to the top flight at home to Manchester United in a week’s time.
“The improvement in form from what we’ve seen in these first few weeks of the season is just a complete contrast,” former Liverpool and England defender Carragher said on Sky Sports after Villa’s victory.
“But we come back to the manager often and rightly so. I think there is currently only Pep Guardiola in the Premier League who is a better manager than Unai Emery.
“When you look at his CV and what he’s actually done in his career, there are some top managers in the league but, like I said, he’s got a great CV and he’s done a brilliant job as well.
“But Morgan Rogers is something special.”
According to Carragher, Emery can call on “one of the best players in the Premier League” in Rogers.
“He just seems to be one of those players who came out of nowhere in some ways,” he added.
“They signed him from Middlesbrough for a small fee and he has become not only one of the best young players in the Premier League, which he was last season, the PFA young player of the year, but he now looks like one of the best players in the Premier League.
“This could be key if Aston Villa feel they can continue to challenge for the league title or win it.”
On Rogers’ stunning 79th-minute winner, Carragher continued: “It’s not an isolated case.
“We’ve seen it before, this technique, but we normally see it on free kicks.
“We saw him at Leeds, he scores the goal there, and it’s brass knuckles, shall we say.”
“What I’ve never seen before is people scoring goals from open play using this technique. It’s obviously a lot easier on a free kick because the ball is stationary.
Carragher believes Morgan’s influence at Villa can now be compared to that of Erling Haaland at Manchester City and Declan Rice at Arsenal.
“That’s what makes him a really special player in the Premier League. He saw a technique that we’ve seen before,” he continued.
“But seeing him in open play is something he’s had to work on in training as well and that’s why I come back to the question: Can Aston Villa win the title?
“I don’t think they can do it, but if you want to win a title, and let’s say Manchester City are going to win the title, we would say: ‘OK, they have Erling Haaland who could be the best player in the league’, and if I look at Arsenal I think of Declan Rice. I see him as maybe the candidate for Player of the Year.
“But with Aston Villa, who could lead them to the title? Who is this special one who could almost be head and shoulders above everyone else in the Premier League? The only player I watch is Morgan Rogers.
“He was the PFA Young Player of the Year. Could he go on and be the PFA Player of the Year this season and take Villa very close to a league title?
Barring a sudden drop in form or injury, Rogers appears to be a candidate for a place in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
And with Rogers going from strength to strength, Carragher believes it is not out of the question the midfielder could overtake Jude Bellingham in the pecking order to start as the Three Lions’ No.10.
He explained: “He’s been one of those players, probably along with Elliot Anderson, in the last six months, for England, that most people look at and think: ‘Oh, in the England team? “It’s a bold move,” but the longer they’re there, the more you think they should be there.
“But what I would say is that Morgan Rogers is arguably competing with our best player at the moment, he plays for Real Madrid, in Jude Bellingham.
“Bellingham played England’s last game and I think in most people’s eyes and in my own eyes, I have to admit that, I think: once we get to the World Cup, Jude Bellingham will be playing in that position.
“But the more I watch Rogers play, and I actually think Thomas Tuchel thinks like this, it’s not an easy decision for Bellingham to come back.
“It’s a real battle for Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers to see who is going to play in that No.10 position behind Harry Kane and if Rogers continues to play like that it’s certainly not a given.”
Are Aston Villa real title contenders?
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