Aston Villa: £82k-a-week star 'really struggling under Gerrard' at Villa Park | OneFootball

Aston Villa attacker Emiliano Buendia has “struggled to hit the heights” since arriving at Villa Park, says journalist Pete O’Rourke.

The 25-year-old joined the Midlands club from Norwich City in a big-money deal last summer, but he has had some difficulties following that move.

Is Buendia a regular starter at Villa Park?

With Villa signing Buendia for a fee that could rise to £38m, according to Sky Sports, you would expect him to be one. However, that has actually not been the case.

This season, the £82,000-a-week Argentine has only started two games for the Villans, while last term, he also spent a lot of time on the bench.

During the 2021/22 campaign, Buendia made 35 appearances in the Premier League, but only 22 of those were starts.

Nevertheless, manager Steven Gerrard says he is still an admirer of the player. “No one’s a bigger fan of Emi Buendia than me,” he said back in August (via BirminghamWorld).

What has O’Rourke said about Buendia?

O’Rourke feels Buendia has really struggled at Villa Park but still thinks he has shown some glimpses of his true quality.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the journalist said: “Buendia’s just really struggled to hit the heights since his arrival at Villa, but I think he has shown in glimpses that there is a player in there ready to explode and make a claim to stay in that side.”

Will Buendia come good at Villa?

He can, as the former Norwich man certainly has some good qualities.

When out of possession, for example, he works extremely hard to win it back. As per FBref, Buendia has ranked in the 81st percentile for pressures and the 93rd for tackles among attacking midfielders and wingers over the last year.

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While he may not be banging in goals or producing plenty of assists for Villa right now, Buendia is hardly a passenger when he does play.

Nevertheless, despite Gerrard raving about Buendia at the beginning of the season, he has only given him a couple of starts this term. When you consider that, the Villa man may not actually get a proper chance to turn things around under his current boss.

It is obviously a long season; a lot can happen between now and the campaign’s conclusion in May. However, as he continues to be overlooked, you just get the impression that Buendia is going to struggle to make an impact at Villa Park while Gerrard remains in the dugout there.