Unai Emery may be handed early pre-season boost at Aston Villa after new Emi Buendia update
Aston Villa fans may well be focused on the summer transfer window, but for the players, pre-season isn’t too far away already.
Unai Emery’s side will be eager to prepare well for the start of the Premier League season following their excellent campaign last season which saw them finish in the top four and book their place in the Champions League.
As the Villans look to build on that success next term, Emery has already been handed an early pre-season boost with an update emerging around Emi Buendia’s fitness ahead this summer.
According to Birmingham Live (1 July) the Argentine winger has stepped up his recovery ahead of the start of pre-season at a football campus in Portugal alongside fellow Villan Jacob Ramsey.
The pair have been joined by Villa’s senior rehab physiotherapist John Whitney and coach Alberto Carbo Benaveny to ready themselves ahead of the start of pre-season.
Will Emi Buendia be fit to return to Aston Villa action ahead of pre-season?
Buendia hasn’t started a competitive fixture for Villa since May 2023 when he featured in Emery’s starting XI for the Premier League win over Tottenham Hotspur at Villa Park.
The 27-year-old played 68 minutes in that clash and impressed alongside Ollie Watkins at the top of the pitch as he completed 70 per cent of his attempted passes whilst hitting the woodwork with one of his two shots, according to Fotmob.
Prior to that game, the Argentine put in a similarly impressive performance as Villa slipped to a 1-0 defeat to Wolves.
Whilst Buendia only completed 69 per cent of his 26 attempted passes, he managed to create two goal-scoring chances for his teammates with both of his passes into the final third of the pitch.
On top of that, the attacking midfielder was unfortunate to not score himself as he produced an xG of 0.38 as he saw a right-footed effort from the edge of the penalty area well saved by Jose Sa.
Despite the disappointing result, the former Norwich man was a constant thorn in Wolves’ side as he registered 14 touches in the penalty area and completed 100 per cent of his four attempted dribbles in the game.
Out of possession, Buendia worked just as hard as he won 78 per cent of nine attempted ground duels and even managed to come out on top of all but one of his aerial battles in the contest whilst winning three tackles.
When compared to other attacking midfielders and wingers in the Premier League in the 2022/23 campaign, the 27-year-old places in the top 16 per cent for progressive passes per 90 minutes, according to Fbref.
Only 13 per cent of his positional peers played more balls into the final third per match and that attacking drive could be a major boost to Villa and Emery throughout next season.
Buendia will also likely help to continue to get the best out of Ollie Watkins at the top end of the pitch as he places in the 84th percentile for through balls played per game. His return could be so important.
Pre-season may not have yet officially got underway at Villa Park and most fans will be crying out for new signings, but Buenida’s reintroduction to the side will be a welcome early boost to Emery this summer.
In other Aston Villa news, Monchi has been told the Villans’ next transfer priority following Douglas Luiz’s move to Juventus
For more Aston Villa news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.