Fresh Aston Villa, Emi Buendia update emerges amid Birmingham City transfer interest | OneFootball

The Argentine continues to be the subject of transfer speculation despite his strong performances of late

An update on Emi Buendia's immediate future as an Aston Villa player has come to light amid recent reports hinting of a potential cross-city switch to Birmingham City.

According to a report from Football Insider on Tuesday morning, the Argentinian playmaker could still depart Villa Park in the January transfer window over fresh concerns regarding a potential breaching of PSR (Profit and Sustainability Rules) that could force the UEFA Europa League outfit into selling key and experienced players after a previously frustrating summer transfer window.

Despite moving on several influential performers such as Jhon Duran and Douglas Luiz for big-money fees within the past year or so, the Villans have been hamstrung on this front of late, which led to them spending £30m on Evan Guessand from OGC Nice, whilst experienced shot-stopper, Marco Bizot, was the only other incoming which involved a fee, with all of Victor Lindelof, Jadon Sancho and Harvey Elliott moving to Villa Park on free transfers or temporary deals from Manchester United and Liverpool respectively.

Meanwhile, less than three miles away in B9, Blues are looking to end their Premier League exile as swiftly as possible, with the club making several eye-catching transfer moves this summer after a record-breaking season, which included the £10m capture of Kyogo Furuhashi from Ligue 1 side, Rennes.

In a bid to add further quality to their creative forces, it emerged post-Deadline Day that Buendia was a potential target for Chris Davies across the summer window.

Since being brought back into the first-team fold in B6, there have been contrasting updates surrounding the 28-year-old, with the aforementioned report the latest on this particular front.

Buendia has spent the past four years with Villa since arriving from Norwich City for a then-club-record £33m, enduring a mixed spell down to overall performances and injury woes.

So far, the former Championship Player of the Season in 2020/21 has scored 12 times and posted a further 10 assists in 106 appearances under Dean Smith, Steven Gerrard and Unai Emery. However, his future in recent months has been far from certain.

Buendia spent the second half of last season on loan with Bayer Leverkusen despite penning a contract extension in the Second City, and was heavily linked with a move to newly-promoted Leeds United throughout the summer window.

Amid claims that Blues had targeted the experienced playmaker to bolster their attacking ranks, it was reported by Football Insider that there was little chance of a controversial switch occuring in January as Emery now values Buendia's presence within the squad.

In between goals against Fulham and Feyenoord last week, Buendia reiterated his desire to stay at Villa Park for the long haul, although it is now being suggested by the aforementioned publication that he could leave the club in January amid PSR concerns, although that also seems unlikely at present.

This comes whilst the high-profile duo of Emiliano Martínez and Morgan Rogers continue to be linked with moves away despite their inconsistent starts to the campaign.

Aston Villa, Birmingham City transfer saga involving Emi Buendia could rumble on

As previously mentioned, Blues have made several statement additions to their squad under Knighthead Capital Management's ownership as they look to bridge the gap between themselves and Villa, and adding Buendia to their squad would be among the biggest yet on ability alone, regardless of the controversy it would cause.

The attacking midfielder's previous record at Championship level speaks for itself, scoring 23 and assisting 28 times in just 77 appearances across two title-winning campaigns at Carrow Road.

In truth, Blues have struggled to create a plethora of chances in their nine games thus far, meaning a player with such strong vision and technical ability in an advanced role would only benefit those around them such as Kyogo, Marvin Ducksch, Jay Stansfield and Demarai Gray.

There is every chance that this saga could rumble on, according to former Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie, who exclusively told Football League World: “I know Birmingham have been interested in him and have been looking for a number 10, creative, a bit of flair.

“I’m sure they’ll be looking at maybe reigniting that little bit of interest for Buendia.

“If it doesn’t work out for him from now until January, I think lots could change," he added.

With both clubs hoping to build momentum on the other side of the international break in their respective divisions, it remains to be seen how much this impacts Buendia and his January prospects, meaning this saga could still have plenty of twists and turns.