Aston Villa have officially opened contract negotiations with playmaker Emi Buendia, rewarding the Argentine attacker for a sensational resurgence under Unai Emery that has cemented his status as a vital component of the club’s attack.
Buendia’s current agreement is scheduled to run until June 2027, though the club holds a valuable option to trigger a 12-month extension. However, with the 29-year-old proving indispensable to Villa’s ambitions, the hierarchy is eager to secure his long-term future and prevent him from entering the final 18 months of his deal.
A Remarkable Turnaround in Birmingham
The contract talks mark a stunning validation of perseverance for a player whose Villa Park career appeared all but over just over a year ago. During the summer of 2025, Buendia found himself so far outside of Emery’s first-team plans that a potential move across the city to rival Birmingham City was openly mooted.
Instead of forcing an exit, Buendia knuckled down behind the scenes, slowly clawing his way back into the manager’s good graces through relentless dedication on the training ground. His hard work paid off in historic fashion last May, when he etched his name into club folklore by scoring one of the goals of the season during Aston Villa’s thrilling victory over Freiburg in Istanbul, capturing the Europa League trophy and delivering the club’s first major piece of silverware since 1996.
Continuing the Clutch Form
Buendia has carried that momentum directly into the current campaign. Prior to the international break, he delivered another masterclass performance, netting a spectacular goal in Villa’s hard-fought 3-2 away victory against Tottenham at White Hart Lane—marking his third consecutive scoring appearance at the stadium.
Speaking glowingly about the player’s redemption last season, Emery highlighted the sheer willpower required to stage such a comeback. “Everything that happened around him, he deserved it because he worked hard to recover his best form as a player,” Emery noted. “When we decided to keep him here, and he decided to stay here as well, I was confident he could get the numbers he is achieving.”
With his 30th birthday approaching on Christmas Day, Buendia is playing some of the finest football of his career. By locking him down to a new, improved contract, Aston Villa will ensure their European hero remains at the heart of their quest for domestic and continental glory for years to come.
