Morgan Rogers to Chelsea is proof football is broken – it needs a reset | Football | Sport
Let’s deal with the absurdity of Chelsea being the ones to secure this deal first of all. Arsenal, the Premier League champions and Champions League runners-up, were keen, and by all accounts, plotting a move of their own.
In a normal world, Arsenal would be competing against teams in and around them for Rogers’ services. Not a side that finished nine places lower, 33 points behind and won’t even play European football of any kind next season.
It beggars belief. In no world should a team that finished considerably closer to the relegation zone than first place be breaking the British transfer record.
One would assume this was a decision somewhat out of Rogers’ control, but surely this is a backwards step for his career? Unlike Chelsea, Aston Villa will be competing in the Champions League, and if the evidence of the last 24 months is anything to go by, it is a better place to ply your trade than the clown show at Stamford Bridge.
You have to feel sorry for Aston Villa fans, as well as Unai Emery in particular. They’ve been blunted by PSR restrictions over the last couple of summers, but Emery has done an incredible job to get the Villains where they are.
Europa League winners last season, as well as a top-four finish, five points ahead of reigning champions Liverpool. Emery was a deserved contender for Manager of the Year, and his reward? Watching his team get ripped to shreds mere months later.
Alongside Rogers, Youri Tielemans departed for Manchester United, and there is talk that Ezri Konsa could attract interest before the summer is out. Is that not just proof that the Premier League is broken?
The rich stay rich, while a team that has hustled to break the glass ceiling are pushed right back down as soon as they show any real signs of progress. Of course, Aston Villa will pocket a handsome fee for Rogers, which they can reinvest in their playing squad.
But if there was any dignity left in the game, Rogers would be turning down offers to join clubs like Chelsea in favour of sticking around at Villa Park to achieve something truly special. Football has well and truly lost the plot.
