Morgan Rogers: Aston Villa forward on his Champions League hat-trick, why Unai Emery is perfect for him and England hopes

If you had told Morgan Rogers 18 months ago that he would be playing regularly in the Premier League and Champions League, having just scored his first hat-trick in Europe, as well as making his senior England debut, he might not have believed you.

But then again, he probably would have done, such is the belief in himself. That is not to say Rogers is over-confident, but you do not achieve what he has at the age of 22 without faith in your own abilities.

“I’m nowhere near where I want to get to and the landmarks I’m hitting, they’re not the only ones I want to hit come the end of my career,” he exclusively told Sky Sports as he was unveiled as PUMA’s newest athlete.

“I know I’ve still got a long way to go. I see it as just the start and it’s something to build on. For someone like me who wants to get to the very top of the game, I know that I have to keep putting in the work. I have to keep the same attitude and mentality that I’ve had throughout.

“With the right people around me, which I do have, I don’t see why I can’t. It’s about staying grounded, level-headed and keep going.”

One of the biggest moments of his career so far was his brilliant hat-trick against Celtic in the Champions League. In fact, his two goals inside five minutes are the quickest ever scored by one player in the competition – just one of the records he broke that evening at the end of January.

“It was kind of mad,” Rogers reflected. “It’s all anyone was talking to me about at half-time, in terms of to keep going and to keep trying to get it [the hat-trick].

“It plays on your mind the longer the game goes on. I’d missed a chance to do it early on in the game, so I was hoping that the time wasn’t done and luckily I got the chance at the end to score.

“It probably took a few days for it to sink in quite what I’ve achieved. I’m really proud that I’ve managed to do it and it’s something that will live with me forever.

“That and making my debut for England are the two major ones that will stick with me. No matter what happens, no matter what I achieve, those two moments are iconic moments for me.

“That immense sense of pride, that immense joy for me and for everyone around me of how I’ve achieved it. It’s something that can never be taken away from me no matter what happens. They’re lovely moments.”

His senior England debut came in November in a 3-0 win away in Greece, handed to him by then-interim manager Lee Carsley. The two had worked together at U21 level too.

“What a lovely guy he is,” Rogers said of Carsley. “Just the way he is, the way he coaches, the way he cares about you as a person as well, he always checks in on you. It helps him being from Birmingham as well, that connection is nice.

“To make my debut with someone like that, who I really trust, really value and really like as a person, is even nicer.”

Now, Rogers has to make an impression on new England boss Thomas Tuchel. “He’s a top manager,” he said of the German. “He’s done it in big leagues across Europe, won the Champions League so we know the pedigree he’s got.

“And everyone’s got a clean slate – that’s how you’ve got to look at it. He’s looking at everyone for the first time with that lens as the England manager, so it’s time to impress, show what you’re about and why you deserve to be there.

“I’m in that same boat, because I want to be in the team. I don’t want to be there to make up the numbers, I want to play games. It’s about showing week in, week out what you’re made of and that’s what I try to do.”

And that will come with Aston Villa. A strong Champions League league phase saw them finish in the top eight and go straight through to the round of 16 while in a more inconsistent Premier League, they are in eighth place.

Part of that can be attributed to European exertions – Aston Villa won just once in the league after playing in the Champions League in midweek. They lost four and drew three of the other seven games.

“The first time juggling the Champions League with the Premier League has been difficult,” Rogers said of the run.

“We found it hard to go again and again and it’s something we’ve got to get used to if we want to achieve what we want and get the club where we want to get to. It’s going to be difficult, but we’ve got numbers in the squad to help us do so.

“It’s about finding the right balance and getting that consistency, which we’ve been lacking at times.

“But the exciting thing is I don’t think we’ve been at our best and we’re still there and thereabouts to where we want to be. We’re not quite exactly there, but we’re not a million miles away and a couple of good results, a couple of good weeks turns in our favour, but we know we’ve got more to come.”

Rogers offers both Tuchel and Unai Emery variety going forward. He’s comfortable playing behind the striker or out on the left, but the 22-year-old doesn’t have a preference for either. “I wouldn’t be able to tell you until the game has started really. As long as I’m playing, I’m happy,” he says.

Emery signed Rogers from Middlesbrough last February, marking almost a year to the day as an Aston Villa player – another landmark. It has become a mutually beneficial relationship that the forward relishes.

“He’s so demanding,” he said of his club manager. “Any little thing he’ll be on you for and the way he is, the detail he goes into, how much he loves the game, how much he wants to win, it rubs off on us. That’s what he wants us to do, we’re a product of him and the way he is.

“Every day I’m learning whether I think I am or I’m not, whether it’s psychologically or how I think about the game. He’s improved me in so many different areas, but mainly about my mindset, about carrying on and doing what I’m good at, even if it doesn’t work and just to keep going.

“He’s so positive. He might not always come across that way in the way he is, but he always wants the best for everyone and the team and ultimately, if you know that and you buy into it, you’re going to get results. There’s no way you don’t.

“He’s such a good manager and a perfect person for me to get that next push. The good thing about him is because I’ve done well, he’s not going to stop me. He’s probably going to go even harder on me in terms of trying to get me to be better, so I’m looking forward to carrying on working with him for many years to come.”