Emi Buendia gesture ‘not a good sign’ as Marc Albrighton flags Aston Villa concern
Emi Buendia was visibly annoyed after being taken off by manager Unai Emery during Aston Villa’s win over Wolves.
Aston Villa snatched all three points against Wolves, with Boubacar Kamara driving in the winner with just over 20 minutes left to play.
Villa have now won six of their last seven games in all competitions, as their impressive form continued against their Midlands rivals.
As a result of the win, Emery’s side moved up to third in the Premier League table, a remarkable feat after being in the relegation zone after five games.
Emi Buendia ‘straight down the tunnel’ after substitution
Buendia was replaced by Ollie Watkins less than 10 minutes into the second half, as Emery looked for ways to open the game up.
Villa had looked very sluggish throughout the first half, maybe feeling the effects of their 2-1 Europa League victory over Young Boys during the week.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, former Aston Villa midfielder Marc Albrighton highlighted Buendia’s reaction to being taken off before the hour mark.
He said: “I’m slightly surprised by this substitution. Emi Buendia doesn’t look happy about it. He is going straight down the tunnel.
“I’m not sure whether he has picked up an injury. I haven’t seen a physio go with him so that hints that he isn’t injured. He isn’t happy, you can tell. He is gesturing something to the fans, this isn’t a good sign.”
Emi Buendia deserved to be taken off
Despite his protestations, Buendia failed to make an impact against Wolves and deserved to be taken off.
The Argentine has been superb in recent weeks, but against Rob Edwards’ side he only managed a 72 per cent pass accuracy, losing possession 11 times in total.
Buendia also didn’t complete either of his two dribbles over the 54 minutes he played, and didn’t have a single shot on goal either.
| Stats | Emi Buendia vs Wolves |
| Pass Accuracy | 72% |
| Shots | 0 |
| Dribbles Completed | 0/2 (0%) |
Emery’s decision to make a change was vindicated just less than 15 minutes later, as Villa took the lead through Kamara.
Buendia has stepped up for Villa this term and is joint-top of the scoring charts with three goals, level with Donyell Malen, while also chipping in with a team-high two assists.
As per FBref, meanwhile, he is in the top six percentile of all attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues for non-penalty goals over the past 12 months.
The Wolves game wasn’t his finest, though, and Emery was justified in taking him off even if it wasn’t injury related.
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