Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers and Chelsea's Cole Palmer will be key to both sides in this weekend's Premier League game
Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers
Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers(Image: Getty Images)
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Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca claims he wouldn’t swap Cole Palmer for Morgan Rogers, despite the Aston Villa star’s scintillating form ahead of Saturday’s meeting between the two sides.
The Villa forward has scored a brace in each of his last two matches, against West Ham and Manchester United, playing an integral role in extending the club’s winning run to 10 matches.
Last month, Rogers signed a new contract with Villa until 2031, despite having penned a long-term deal with the club just a year earlier.
Naturally, there will be growing interest in Rogers from elsewhere, but the player is very settled and loves working with Unai Emery, who continues to develop him into a Premier League star.
After coming through the ranks at West Brom, Rogers joined Manchester City, where he became close friends with Palmer. Maresca, who coached Rogers during their time together at the Etihad Stadium, was asked whether he would pick Rogers over Palmer ahead of the weekend showdown.
“No, because I love Cole, and Cole is my player,” Maresca said. “They are two fantastic players. For sure they are going to be important during the game.
“But I think both players, they need the other 10 around them to support them and to help them to do the right things. For sure it's about Morgan, it's about Cole, but it's about the team.”
Palmer has featured only eight times for the Blues in all competitions this season, with the forward struggling with a persistent groin injury. However, he has appeared in Chelsea’s last four Premier League games, with his minutes being carefully managed.
In last weekend’s draw at Newcastle, Palmer completed 79 minutes, and Maresca now believes he is ready to play the full 90 when Villa visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
“I think he's ready for 90 minutes,” explained Maresca. “The progression for a player is 45, one hour, 70. He already played one hour against, I think, Everton. He played more than 70 against Newcastle. I think the progression is there.”
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