Arsenal are stepping up plans to recruit Morgan Rogers after identifying the Aston Villa star as the top target to strengthen attacking power.
According to British media, the Emirates Stadium team is preparing to approach Aston Villa to discuss a deal that is predicted to exceed the £100 million mark.
At the age of 23, Rogers has made remarkable progress in the past two seasons. The English attacking midfielder has not only gained the trust of coach Unai Emery at Aston Villa but has also been given opportunities by Thomas Tuchel in the England national team. Impressive form has helped him enter the sights of a series of European "giants".
Rogers joined Aston Villa from Middlesbrough for about £16 million in 2024. Since then, he has almost always been Emery's number one choice, only missing the starting lineup for 2 Premier League matches in the last two seasons.
In addition to Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are also closely following the situation of the England international. However, Arsenal is said to be the team showing the greatest determination in the race to sign this player.
Why does Arsenal want Rogers?
Coach Mikel Arteta's priority is to add a left winger. Leandro Trossard has moved to Besiktas, while Gabriel Martinelli's future is still not guaranteed. Although Eberechi Eze can take on this role, most of his matches last season were used in the number 10 position.
Meanwhile, Arsenal's right wing has been very stable with Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke and Max Dowman. Therefore, Arteta wants to strengthen the quality on the opposite flank to maintain the squad depth to serve the ambition to defend the Premier League title as well as go further in the Champions League.
Where will Rogers play?
Although often used in the attacking midfielder position at Aston Villa, Arsenal plans to arrange Rogers to play on the left wing.
Last season, Rogers started 21 matches in the central position but also had 15 starts on the left wing. Notably, when playing on the left wing, he scored 5 goals and had 3 assists, equivalent to the number of times he participated in goals when playing as an attacking midfielder, although the number of matches was less.
Statistics show that Rogers achieves higher attacking efficiency when starting from the left flank. The number of goals, assists, chances created and number of shots per game all increased compared to when he played in the center.
The strength of the England international is cutting into the center with his right foot or accelerating down to the touchline to cross for teammates. This is considered the type of player Arsenal still lacks on the left wing.
Last season, only 33% of Arsenal's attacks were deployed on the left wing, while Saka's right wing accounted for 43%.
Conversely, Aston Villa has a more balanced ball deployment rate - 37% of attacks on the left wing compared to 35% on the right wing.
If the deal is completed, Rogers will not only help Arsenal increase the depth of the squad but also bring a new direction of attack for Arteta's army.
