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Just 60 days in the past when Morgan Rogers found himself on the Stadium of Light pitch, seeming perplexed as the Villa manager admonished him for not reading a through-ball. Back then, as Villa failed to win in six, doubts remained whether his displays were a symptom or a cause of Villa's wider issues.

“As Rogers swept in his second… Emery ripped off his thick padded coat, spread his arms and roared.”

On Sunday, however, the manager's outburst was entirely much more joyous. As Rogers curled home his second to reinstate the lead for Villa, Emery ripped off his jacket, threw his arms wide and bellowed. The Birmingham club marched on to ten wins in a row , despite not winning their initial half-dozen games, find themselves just three points behind table-toppers Arsenal.

Are They Genuine Hopefuls?

It remains an exceptionally difficult question to answer. The historical record, the traditional standing of the club, argues against it. Moreover, they've rarely been entirely convincing in many games, while the positive results have accumulated.

As per Opta, on just two occasions have Villa had an expected goals figure more than 0.5 greater than their opponents. For a club who have strung together 10 in a row, they appear weirdly vulnerable – but at the moment the tight outcomes are swinging for them.

The Reliant Strategy

Their recent policy seems to be to trade blows with rivals before hoping their star man to save the day with some crisp finishes. This occurred at Leeds, it happened in London, and again versus United.

The initial strike came from an exquisite effort, arced right inside the upright from a wide position. The follow-up goal proved to be a slightly less clean iteration of his first capitalizing on an Ollie Watkins lay-off.

“Rogers’ right foot is now akin to Robben’s legendary left: forewarned does not mean forearmed, and stopping him is another matter entirely.”

Is It Sustainable?

Reason suggests otherwise. In the recent win, the opposition managed more shots and more efforts on goal. They have won each of their last eight by a single goal. The defence has been breached in all except one of those matches.

Regression to the mean might be the biggest rival the club will encounter in the near future. The forward, in all likelihood, cannot keep on thrashing his shots into the net's top corner indefinitely.

A Case for Belief

Perhaps there is an alternative path whereby, rather than results trending towards performances, the team's displays improve to justify the wins. Important figures may yet find their top level.

• Ollie Watkins may begin to finding the net regularly.
• The winger might become the force he resembled in Germany.
• Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres are set to regain fitness, bolstering a periodically leaky defensive unit.

Maybe within that lies the possibility for a sustained push, however, it is improbable can persist in leaning entirely on a single individual.

Enjoying the Ride

But then, this is a surprise. Few believed Villa would occupy in the top three for the holidays. And without a doubt two months ago, no one envisioned the young forward by the end of the year would be leading a championship pursuit and appearing as a crucial Three Lions star.

The current run should be enjoyed for the very reason that it seems so surreal. As Rogers stood in front of the Villa faithful at the final whistle orchestrating the applause, he appeared to be relishing every moment. Which he fully merits. These runs of form are uncommon in the sport and ought to be celebrated.