‘It’s like Unai Emery has got a new signing’ – Ex-Aston Villa employee wowed by what he’s seen
Emi Buendia has had a fantastic run of form for Aston Villa in recent weeks, with the Argentine being rightly praised for his performances.
It has been a terrific turnaround for the 28-year-old, who had struggled to return to form after his long-term injury.
In the latter half of last season, Buendia was even sent out on loan to Bayer Leverkusen after falling out of Unai Emery’s plans.
However, after a recent string of goals and assists in his recent outings, he has quickly become a star player at Villa Park once again.
Bryan King: Emi Buendia is like a new signing
Since Buendia’s fantastic performance against Fulham at the end of September, the Villa man has not stopped putting in quality displays.
Goals against Feyernoord, Tottenham and Bournemouth have followed, with the attacker also picking up an assist against Manchester City.
- Buendia had been out for the entire 2023-24 campaign due to a ACL injury
- Upon returning to fitness last season, the attacker struggled for form
- However, Buendia has since been on fire for Aston Villa
As a result, former Aston Villa scout Bryan King has heaped praise on Buendia for his form.
He said: “The loan move has given him confidence. He’s shown in the first part of the season that he’s capable of challenging anybody in the Villa squad for a place in the team.
“It’s been like getting a new signing. He’s proved that, and he’s been producing the goods.
“You can’t rely on just two players in today’s game, that’s for sure. They need help, and it’s been fortunate for Villa that the other players have stepped up to the plate while Watkins and Rogers have been struggling.”
- Read more: Troy Deeney shares ‘only thing’ he can agree with Thomas Tuchel on, it’s about Morgan Rogers
What has Unai Emery said about Buendia?
Given his recent uptick in form, Emery will obviously be extremely pleased with how Buendia is playing at Villa.
Each game, the attacker is seemingly improving, as he continues to cause the opposition problems.
Speaking before the Leeds United match, Emery told the Express and Star on 22 November how pleased he was with the Argentine’s progress.
He said: “He struggled last year and all the season, firstly with us for six months, not getting his performance and not playing consistently and not feeling really good.
“When he was on loan in Germany, with Bayer Leverkusen, he didn’t achieve his confidence. He didn’t achieve minutes. He didn’t achieve numbers to recover himself.
“This year is completely different. He started so focused. He started the pre-season very demanding, getting fit, feeling confident, playing with his skills, showing in each match he played.
“He deserved it, because he worked hard to recover his best form as a player like he had before he was here.”
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