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A mere eight weeks prior when Morgan Rogers stood on the Stadium of Light pitch, appearing bewildered while his coach admonished him over missing a penetrating pass. At that point, with the team went six without a win, it wasn't clear if his displays were an indicator or the reason of Villa's broader struggles.

“Following Rogers' second strike… Emery discarded his jacket, extended his arms, and let out a triumphant roar.”

On Sunday, however, the sideline response was entirely decidedly more positive. After the England international curled home his brace-sealing goal to reinstate the lead for Villa, Emery tore off his winter coat, spread his arms and bellowed. Villa marched on to ten wins in a row and despite not winning their opening six fixtures, are somehow only three points adrift of pace-setters Arsenal.

Are They Serious Title Contenders?

That’s an exceptionally difficult question to address. The historical record, the traditional standing of Villa, suggests not. Furthermore, their performances haven't been wholly dominant in many games, even as the positive results have stacked up.

As per Opta, on just two occasions has the team had an xG significantly higher than the other team. For a side which has strung together a ten-match winning streak, Villa look weirdly vulnerable – but right now the fine lines are swinging for them.

The Winning Formula

The current approach seems to be to engage in a shootout with rivals and then rely on Rogers to rescue them with two crisp finishes. It happened away to Leeds, it occurred against West Ham, and again against Manchester United.

His opener originated from an exquisite effort, arced precisely inside the post from the edge of the area. His brace-completing goal proved to be a slight scruffier version of his first capitalizing on an Ollie Watkins lay-off.

“Perhaps Rogers’ right foot is becoming like Arjen Robben’s left: just because you know he’s going to whip the ball into the top corner doesn’t mean you can stop him.”

Can It Last?

Reason suggests otherwise. During the latest victory, the opposition managed more shots and more efforts on goal. Villa have secured their last eight victories by a single goal. The defence has been breached in all except one of those games.

Regression to the mean might be the greatest opponent Villa have to face over the coming weeks. Rogers, surely, cannot maintain blasting his shots past despairing goalkeepers week in, week out.

A Case for Belief

Maybe there exists a different scenario where, instead of results trending towards performances, performances begin to trend towards results. Key players may yet rediscover their best form.

• Ollie Watkins may begin to finding the net regularly.
• Jadon Sancho may rediscover the force he was in Germany.
• The defensive duo are due to return from injury, strengthening an occasionally vulnerable defensive unit.

This could contain the seeds of a genuine bid, however, it is improbable can continue to depend solely on a single individual.

Relishing the Unlikely

However, nobody expected this. It seemed improbable Aston Villa would be in the top three for the holidays. And most definitely earlier this season, nobody thought the young forward as the year closed would be leading a title charge while looking like a crucial player for the national team.

This remarkable period should be enjoyed exactly since it feels so unlikely. When the match-winner stood in front of the home supporters at the final whistle orchestrating the applause, he appeared to be relishing every moment. As he deserves to. Such periods are rare in football and should be relished.