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A mere two months ago when the Villa attacker stood on the pitch at Sunderland, looking confused as the Villa manager berated him for not reading a through-ball. During that period, as the club went six without a win, the question was if his performances were a sign or the source 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, in contrast, the manager's outburst proved to be much more joyous. As the England international drilled in his second to reinstate the lead for Villa, the boss discarded his coat, threw his arms wide and shouted in triumph. The Birmingham club were on their way to a tenth straight victory , despite not winning any of their first six fixtures, are somehow only three points off table-toppers Arsenal.

Is Aston Villa Serious Hopefuls?

This is a rather hard question to resolve. The historical record, a general sense of the club, suggests not. Additionally, their performances haven't been entirely convincing this season, while the victories have accumulated.

Per statistical analysis, in only two games has the team registered an expected goals figure more than 0.5 greater than their opponents. For a side that have just won ten consecutive victories, Villa look strangely fragile – however right now the margins are swinging for them.

The Winning Formula

Their recent policy appears to be to engage in a shootout with rivals and wait for their talisman to bail them out with some clinical strikes. This was the case against Leeds, it happened against West Ham, and it happened versus United.

Rogers' first goal stemmed from a superb shot, arced precisely inside the post from the edge of the area. The follow-up goal acted as a slightly less clean iteration of the opener as he pounced on a setup by his strike partner.

“Much like Robben with his left, Rogers’ right foot has become a known threat that remains brutally unstoppable, regardless of anticipation.”

Is It Sustainable?

Reason suggests otherwise. In the recent win, Manchester United registered more efforts and more direct attempts. They have secured their last eight victories by the narrowest of margins. They’ve conceded in nearly all of those matches.

Regression to the mean might be the biggest rival the club will encounter over the coming weeks. Their key man, in all likelihood, cannot keep on thrashing his shots past despairing goalkeepers indefinitely.

Potential for Growth

Could it be a different scenario where, rather than results trending towards performances, the team's displays improve to justify the wins. Vital cogs may yet return to peak condition.

• Ollie Watkins could start adding to his goal tally.
• The winger could transform into the player he was during his peak.
• The injured centre-backs are due to come back from the treatment room, strengthening a periodically leaky defence.

This could contain the seeds for a sustained push, yet it seems unlikely can continue to depend solely on one man.

Relishing the Unlikely

But then, this is a surprise. Nobody thought Aston Villa would be in a Champions League place in December. And certainly earlier this season, no one envisioned the young forward now would be spearheading a hunt for the title and appearing as an essential England player.

This winning streak is to be savoured precisely because it appears so improbable. When the hero stood in front of the North End when the game ended leading the celebrations, he seemed to be relishing every moment. Which he fully merits. These spells are rare in football and ought to be celebrated.