Manchester City and Hugo Viana ready to meet £100M fee for Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers | OneFootball

Manchester City are among three Premier League heavyweights locked in an intensifying race to sign Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers, with Arsenal and Chelsea also firmly in contention for the England international, as per a new report.

Rogers has been one of the standout players in English football over the past 18 months, establishing himself as a cornerstone of Unai Emery‘s Aston Villa side that claimed the UEFA Europa League title last season – registering 14 goals and 12 assists in 50 appearances across all competitions while earning his first set of senior England call-ups in the process.

It was reported earlier this month that Manchester City had been keeping a close eye on the 23-year-old, with the Etihad Stadium regarded as one of the most likely destinations for a player director of football Hugo Viana had identified as a profile of significant interest during the squad planning process.

What was once described as monitoring has now developed into direct discussions with Rogers’ representatives, with all three clubs – City, Arsenal and Chelsea – having presented their respective visions to the player’s camp ahead of what looks set to be a pivotal few weeks in the window.

Report: Rogers impressed by Arsenal as City see homecoming opportunity

According to the information of journalist Graeme Bailey, Aston Villa‘s demand for a fee exceeding £100 million has done nothing to deter any of the three clubs, with the race to sign Rogers intensifying as the summer transfer window progresses.

Villa are insistent on eclipsing the £100 million they received from City for Jack Grealish in 2021 – reflecting a desire to make Rogers their most expensive departure on record – a figure also shaped by the fact that Middlesbrough are due up to 20 percent of any future sale fee.

Of the three clubs, Arsenal are understood to have made the strongest impression on Rogers and those around him so far, with Gunners boss Mikel Arteta and sporting director Andrea Berta having played an active role in outlining the north Londoners’ vision and how the attacker would fit in at the Emirates Stadium.

Rogers spent part of his youth career at the Etihad Stadium before departing without a senior appearance and senior figures within the club view the prospect of reacquiring a player they once helped develop as an opportunity with considerable merit ahead of Enzo Maresca‘s imminent appointment as Manchester City manager.

Chelsea‘s interest is also notable for its history as co-director of recruitment Joe Shields knows Rogers well, having been instrumental in taking him to City during his time as academy director at the Etihad Stadium – and that existing relationship has given Stamford Bridge bosses a strong line of communication throughout the process.

What would a Rogers signing mean for Manchester City’s summer?

Rogers’ profile – direct running, technical creativity, the ability to operate across the left side or in a central attacking role – maps closely to the kind of wide forward Viana has consistently targeted this window, with City also actively looking to sign a new winger as Savinho hopes to join Tottenham.

Villa’s position as UEFA Europa League holders and newly-qualified UEFA Champions League participants heading into the new season gives Emery genuine leverage in any conversation. Rogers is not pushing for an exit, his contract runs until 2031 and Villa have every commercial and sporting incentive to hold firm at a nine-figure valuation.

City’s own financial commitments this summer are already considerable, with a club-record pursuit of Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson ongoing, and further spend anticipated – which makes the prospect of simultaneously funding a £100 million-plus move for Rogers a significant test of Viana’s budget management.

Whether City ultimately push to the front of the queue, settle for a different attacking target, or find themselves outmaneuvered by Arsenal’s early momentum remains to be seen – but with three of the Premier League’s biggest clubs actively engaged and Villa’s resolve about to face its most serious examination, the Rogers saga is only likely to accelerate from here.