Chelsea signed Alejandro Garnacho from rivals Manchester United towards the end of the last transfer window.
The winger managed to get his first goal for the club last weekend, scoring in their 2-1 defeat to Sunderland at Stamford Bridge.
Garnacho looked quite unhappy when he was taken off, but the 21-year-old will get plenty more opportunities to play the full 90 minutes this season, with Chelsea having so many games.
In the end, the Blues brought in Garnacho and Jamie Gittens to strengthen their left flank, but they were not the only players who were looked at.
Josko Gvardiol of Manchester City battles with Morgan Rogers of Aston Villa
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Chelsea prioritised Alejandro Garnacho over Morgan Rogers
According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea also had an interest in Aston Villa star Morgan Rogers.
However, they decided to make a serious effort to sign Garnacho and overlooked the England international as a result.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano said: “Chelsea had a serious interest in Morgan Rogers but never became a concrete topic because Chelsea decided to go very strong for Alejandro Garnacho. And so at the beginning of the summer window, end of May, beginning of June, Chelsea had some conversation to understand the situation of Morgan Rogers, but they never wanted from Aston Villa to open doors to a move.”
Villa and Rogers started the season really slowly but have picked up in recent weeks. After failing to register a goal contribution in his first five Premier League games, the 23-year-old has now found the back of the net once and provided two assists.
If Chelsea decide to make a move for him in the future, they are going to have to spend a lot of money to secure his signature. It is thought that Villa currently value Rogers at £100m.
Alejandro Garnacho during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Sunderland
Photo by Jacques Feeney/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
How Alejandro Garnacho and Morgan Rogers compared last season
Rogers certainly had the more productive campaign out of him and Garnacho, though he was handed more games and minutes in the Premier League.
In total, Rogers managed to register 18 goal contributions in 37 league appearances, which is a great return. Garnacho, on the other hand, could only muster eight in 36. Again, though, the Argentina international did not play as often.
Player Games Starts Minutes Goals Assists Shots per game Key passes per game Dribbles per game
Alejandro Garnacho 36 23 2,196 6 2 2.3 1 0.7
Morgan Rogers 37 37 3,131 8 10 1.5 1.4 1.8
Via Alejandro Garnacho’s WhoScored and Morgan Rogers’ WhoScored pages
Whatever the case, Rogers would have been the better signing. He is further ahead in his development and can play in more attacking positions than Garnacho.