‘If I’m being honest…’ – Matt Le Tissier reveals his advice to Morgan Rogers after Aston Villa woes
Morgan Rogers has been backed to find his feet with Aston Villa once again in the coming weeks after a slow start to the new season along with the rest of his teammates.
Former Southampton and England playmaker Matt Le Tissier exclusively told Football Insider that he believes that Rogers does not deserve any criticism levelled his way, and his rough patch of form will soon be forgotten about.
Rogers only joined Aston Villa from Middlesbrough for an initial £8million [BBC] in February last year, but his rise to stardom since then has been a notable one, and he is now a fully-fledged England international.
The 23-year-old winger has established himself as one of Unai Emery’s key players, and interest in his signature was rife this summer after Football Insider revealed in May that Villa will do Villa would do everything they could to keep hold of Rogers amid interest from Chelsea.
He remained at Villa Park past the end of the summer deadline despite further interest from Chelsea and Tottenham, but has started the new campaign in surprisingly poor form, without a goal or an assist in his first five games with Emery’s side still yet to score in the Premier League.
Le Tissier says Rogers does not deserve criticism and will soon be sprinkling Aston Villa ‘magic’
Rogers issued a cryptic message to his Aston Villa critics after their recent loss to Brentford, with Emery’s side slipping to their third defeat of the season in just five outings as they exited the Carabao Cup.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider about Rogers’ current form and his potential to bounce back, Le Tissier urged him and their fans not to panic, saying: “Morgan Rogers’ form at the start of this season is being called into question. I find it a little bit harsh, if I’m honest. Aston Villa have struggled, their whole team has struggled, so it’s not a real concern that Morgan is doing this on his own.
“His whole team is struggling, and often when that happens, it is difficult for the creative players to really get going. One of the things that I noticed in my career is that, when the team does go through a bad spell, the first people that get criticised are the ones that are expected to produce the magic week-in, week-out.
“So I had experience of that, and I would say to Morgan that, ‘it is completely normal, everybody goes through little patches of good form and bad form, so don’t panic. Your form will return, Aston Villa will start scoring goals soon and this will all be forgotten.'”
Rogers responds to early season struggles ahead of Aston Villa’s trip to Sunderland
Rogers burst onto the scene with real aplomb last year, and it is clear that he is very talented player who has a lot to give in English football in the years to come at just 23-years-old.
He does need to quickly get back to his best, however, and will know that Villa’s next test away at Sunderland on Saturday (20 September) is set to provide a huge test despite their newly-promoted status.
He spoke to Sky Sports ahead of the clash and admitted that neither his own game nor the team’s overall play have been up to scratch so far this term, saying: “It’s been difficult, there’s no hiding that. I suppose I might have been a surprise package last year, but people now kind of know about me and know my game. You get found out if you’re not trying to improve.
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 54 | 14 | 16 |
“As a team, we’ve struggled a bit, but I think that’s part and parcel of football. I don’t think there is anything to worry about, but at the same time we know we need to get better.”
Rogers is believed to be unsettled at Aston Villa right now amid interest from Chelsea, Spurs, Arsenal and another unnamed top six club, but if that is the case, he needs to put his woes behind him quickly to help the Villans move back towards the top of the table and progress in Europe.