Morgan Rogers gives his first interview on joining Chelsea, a deal which has become a British record transfer fee of £117m.
David Ornstein reported on the 18th of July that Chelsea had reached a verbal agreement with the bid accepted by Villa, signing a seven-year contract.
Arsenal had been interested but Rogers chose Chelsea instead, with Xabi Alonso said to be instrumental in making the decision.
He chose Chelsea. pic.twitter.com/V6NrGsuZH9
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 21, 2026
His new club said in a statement on their website: “Chelsea is delighted to announce the signing of England international Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa.
“The 23-year-old forward has signed a contract at Stamford Bridge until 2033 and will join Xabi Alonso’s squad ahead of the 2026/27 season.
“Rogers arrives at Chelsea having established himself as one of the Premier League’s leading young attacking talents.
“During his time at Aston Villa, his goals and assists contributed to 40 goals in 85 Premier League appearances, guiding the Midlands club to a top-four finish before lifting the UEFA Europa League trophy last season.
“Since making his senior England debut in November 2024, Rogers has become a regular for the Three Lions, earning 22 caps and representing his country at this summer’s FIFA World Cup.
“Welcome to Chelsea, Morgan!”
Aston Villa said on their website: “Since joining from Middlesbrough in 2024, the midfielder has enjoyed a rapid rise to prominence, helping Villa to lift the UEFA Europa League last term, scoring the third goal in the final in Istanbul.
“During his time at the club, he also earned his first senior England caps, representing his country at the FIFA World Cup 2026, where the Three Lions finished third.
“A player with impeccable behaviour and commitment, Morgan leaves Aston Villa with the best wishes of everyone at the football club for both his service to the club and for his future career.
“He will always remain a core part of our recent great moments and memories.”
ROGERS INTERVIEW:
Interviewer: Morgan, how does it feel to finally be here?
Morgan: Yeah, I’m just so excited, so happy, grateful for the opportunity and, yeah, can’t wait to get going, really.
Interviewer: Why did you pick Chelsea?
Morgan: I don’t think needs to be, much more needs to be said, really, the size of the club, the stature, I think the progression and the way the club wants to go and how it wants to move forward. It’s something that I want to be a part of and yeah, I see myself fitting in there nicely and hopefully it can be a positive experience of moving forward together as a club. So yeah, I’m really excited and I think it was just perfect for me.
Interviewer: And have you had much of a chance to look around Cobham yet?
Morgan: Yeah, I’ve been here today and I’ve played here as a kid and it doesn’t get any worse every time I come back. It’s a lovely place to train to be, has everything you need as a player to excel and to finally get the best use out of it. Yeah, it’s really nice.
Interviewer: Have you had a chat with Xabi Alonso yet?
Morgan: Yeah, I’ve had a few conversations with him. I think it’s important for me to be here and to understand what the manager’s like, how he is and how he wants to operate. It very much fits with the way I see the game, the way I want to play, the way I want to be me and be free and express myself. Him being a part of that was a massive decision for me to be here.
Interviewer: And putting your Chelsea shirt on for the first time today, how did that feel?
Morgan: Yeah, it’s nice. Looks good. A blue I haven’t worn before, so yeah, it looks nice. I like it. Yeah, many more to come.
Interviewer: So we’ve all seen you on the pitch. We know what you can do, but how would you describe yourself as a player?
Morgan: I’d say I’m kind of a free spirit, free flow footballer. I like to take risks, make things happen, kind of change games and be a difference maker in the game and whatever that might take, it be a goal assist. Even defensively, I just want to bring what I can to the game to try and make an impact and a difference and I’ll always, always do my best to do that. I’ll always try and make a difference. I don’t just want to be out there for the sake of it. to show the fans why I’m here and what I’m about really. Yeah, gonna be trying to give my all into doing that and give back.
Interviewer: You know about your relationship with Cole [Palmer]. Can you tell us a bit more about that?
Morgan: Yeah, I’ve known Cole since probably I was about 14. First in the England team and then we were both at Man City together. So we’ve been speaking about this for a while and we always have played together as an opportunity and for it to happen, yeah we’re both excited he’s non-stop ringing my phone and texting me and yeah I can’t wait I think that’s probably the most special thing playing one of your best friends and being around him every day is something I’m really excited about.
Interviewer: What was his reaction when you first told him about Chelsea?
Morgan: Yeah, he’s so happy. He’s never taken that much in his life. He’s not great on his phone, so he’s been great on his phone this week. So yeah, you know, he’s excited, which is really nice for me as well to know that that means so much to someone else as well that it made to be here. So yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. Really excited.
Interviewer: I have to ask the celebration.
Morgan: It was coming.
Interviewer: The moment when you guys get to do it together. That’s going to be iconic isn’t it?
Morgan: Yeah, we haven’t really spoken about it actually, funny enough. But I’m sure it will get mentioned at some point. Yeah, don’t see why not. Hopefully many us can score loads of goals and we’ve got both chances to do it. Yeah, looking forward to it.
Interviewer: Looking forward to the link up as are all Chelsea fans. You work with England. Have you had a chance to speak to Reece [James] and find out a bit more about Chelsea and about being a Chelsea player?
Morgan: I spoke Reece more about it. Obviously being a captain, being a part of it and he was just explaining to me at the club what it’s about. I wanted to get a feeling, vibe for it, I asked him questions just about it to make sure my decision was right. But at the moment he started speaking and talking about the way is and how the group is and the conversations he’d had with the manager and what the club was looking to do and move forward. It was pretty much somewhere that I was really excited about joining. So yeah, I think those conversations are good to have, especially with the club captain and someone that’s done so well at the club and been there for so long and what he’s achieved here as well and he’s going to give his honest opinion that’s what Reece is like he’s always been like that since I’ve known him so yeah it’s a really good person to speak to so yeah I’m just really excited to get going.
Interviewer: Did any other boys give you any advice?
Morgan: Just to be me, think that’s the most important thing in anything I think. If a club wants you or players want you, they want you to be you and they want that version of you. So it’s just about me doing that, me adapting to what the team wants and different players and how they play, but then ultimately still showing my qualities and what I’m about. So looking forward to trying to do that as quick as possible and integrate with the team as early as possible.
Interviewer: Last year, do you have a message for the Chelsea fans?
Morgan: Yeah, just when I say I can’t wait to see you is all at Stamford Bridge and yeah, I’m going to give my all back and try and do something special with the project moving forward and yeah, I just can’t wait to get going. Amazing, best of luck man. very much.
