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A mere eight weeks ago when Morgan Rogers was standing on the Stadium of Light pitch, looking confused while the Villa manager scolded him for not reading a pass in behind. Back then, as the club went six without a win, doubts remained whether his displays were a symptom or a cause of Villa's more general malaise.

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

On Sunday, in contrast, the touchline reaction proved to be decidedly more positive. As Rogers swept in his brace-sealing goal to reinstate Villa's lead, the boss ripped off his winter coat, spread his arms and bellowed. The Birmingham club marched on to ten wins in a row , despite not winning any of their first six fixtures, find themselves just three points behind table-toppers Arsenal.

Is This Team Legitimate Hopefuls?

It remains a rather hard query to address. History, the perceived status of this institution, suggests not. Furthermore, they've rarely been completely commanding this season, while the positive results have accumulated.

According to the data, in only two games have Villa had an xG more than 0.5 greater than their opponents. For a side who have just won ten consecutive victories, they appear curiously susceptible – yet right now the tight outcomes are falling their way.

The Winning Formula

Their recent policy appears to be to exchange chances with an opponent before hoping Rogers to bail them out with some clinical strikes. This occurred at Leeds, it happened against West Ham, and it happened against United.

Rogers' first goal stemmed from a brilliant finish, curled precisely inside the post from the corner of the box. The follow-up goal proved to be a slight scruffier version of his first capitalizing on a pass from Watkins.

“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?

Common sense dictates no. During the latest victory, Manchester United had more efforts and more shots on target. Villa have secured their last eight victories by a single goal. The defence has been breached in nearly all of those matches.

A statistical correction may well be the most significant challenge the club must confront in the near future. The forward, surely, cannot keep on thrashing his shots into the top corner week in, week out.

A Case for Belief

Perhaps there is an alternative path where, instead of outcomes regressing to match displays, performances begin to trend towards results. Key players may yet find their top level.

• The main striker may begin to finding the net regularly.
• The attacking talent may rediscover the player he showed at Borussia Dortmund.
• The injured centre-backs are set to regain fitness, bolstering an occasionally vulnerable backline.

This could contain the seeds of a title challenge, however, it is improbable cannot keep relying on one man.

Relishing the Unlikely

However, this is a surprise. Few believed Villa would sit third at Christmas. And certainly back in October, nobody thought the midfielder as the year closed would be spearheading a championship pursuit while establishing himself as an essential England player.

The current run is to be savoured exactly since it seems so surreal. When the match-winner positioned himself before the Villa faithful after the match orchestrating the applause, he appeared to be relishing every moment. Which he fully merits. Such periods are rare in football and ought to be celebrated.