Harvey Elliott responds to Morgan Rogers’ message after ‘Gazza’ verdict made
Aston Villa and England are both spoilt for choice in attacking midfield after Morgan Rogers put in a starring display against Serbia.
Rogers had failed to impress against Andorra after being limited to just 22 minutes off the bench in a largely passive England victory at Villa Park, as none of the Three Lions’ three Aston Villa players started.
With Bukayo Saka, Cole Palmer, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden all absent from Thomas Tuchel‘s squad, the likes of Rogers, Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze all had chances to stake their starting claims.
England put their disappointing display against Andorra in the rear-view mirror with a 5-0 demolition of Serbia on Tuesday, and Rogers grabbed his opportunity to start in the number 10 role with both hands.
Morgan Rogers evokes ‘Gazza’ in stunning England display
England put in a five-star performance from front to back in dispatching Serbia in Belgrade, with two quick-fire goals from Harry Kane and Noni Madueke opening up a comfortable 2-0 lead at half-time.
A deft flick from Rogers sent Madueke racing away from the defence to slot home his first England goal, and the Aston Villa star’s performance was compared to the legendary Paul Gascoigne by Roy Keane.
After his Aston Villa team-mate Ezri Konsa netted his first international goal, Marc Guehi and Marcus Rashford rounded off the scoring, Rogers posted on Instagram to celebrate his breakout performance.
Recent Villa Park arrival Harvey Elliott responded with two ‘fire’ emojis to Rogers’ post, which simply said: “Great night in Belgrade.”
Aston Villa stars to form nucleus of new-look England side
Football Insider Verdict
Madueke was a “nightmare” for Serbia’s defenders as Keane heaped further praise on England’s star performers against Serbia, but his goal came in a large part thanks to Rogers’ clever first-time flick.
The 23-year-old ran the show in attacking midfield with a display which could leave Bellingham and Palmer fighting for their places in the side, as Konsa continued his partnership with Guehi at the back.
Ollie Watkins is unlikely to usurp Kane anytime soon with the 2026 World Cup now in sight, but after his own heroics at Euro 2024, expect the Aston Villa trio to play a big role for the Three Lions next summer.