A subplot of Aston Villa’s first win of the season was Emi Buendia’s impact from the bench.
The attacking midfielder set up John McGinn, before scoring himself two minutes later, after being introduced at the restart.
It was his first Villa goal for a year – since scoring in the Carabao Cup against Wycombe last September – and first in the Premier League since March 2023.
Villa were open to letting the 28-year-old leave in the summer after he spent the second half of last season on loan at Bayer Leverkusen.
Buendia wanted to fight for his place, having joined from Norwich in a then club record £38m deal in 2021 before seeing his Villa career interrupted by a serious knee injury two years ago, which kept him out for the entire 2023-24 season.
“He didn’t want to leave, he had the possibility to leave in the transfer window but he wanted to stay here and take the commitment here. He is showing it every day and every match,” said manager Unai Emery.
“We used it to get his best, energy, commitment and qualities. He scored, he helped us and he is going to be important this year.”
