Aston Villa ‘close to meeting demands’ for huge summer transfer
Aston Villa are said to have edged Arsenal in the race to sign Emi Buendia from Norwich City.
Buendia are among Villa’s main targets this summer after an exceptional season for the championship title winners Norwich.
The winger has scored 15 goals and recorded 16 assists in 39 appearances as Norwich secured an immediate return to the Premier League after being relegated last year.
Villa is looking for reinforcements in the attacking zones and head coach Dean Smith is a longtime admirer of the Argentine.
Arsenal are also enthusiastic but Goal (by Express) report that Villa is now firmly in control of Buendia ahead of Mikel Arteta.
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They report Villa is “closer to meeting Norwich demands” for the 24-year-old, who is said to be valued at over £ 35million.
Smith recently explained Villa’s hiring policy ahead of the transfer window.
“In terms of recruiting, we are talking about the strengths we are looking for, which is that the players have Premier League experience and are [ideally] British because there is no risk of adaptation, â€he said.
“Then you look at the experience of the top five leagues. This is the kind of process we go through when looking to recruit.
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He added: “I don’t know if (the signings) will be a good deal because everyone is overvaluing their players, that’s to be expected. I think there has definitely been a twinge in the EFL.
“There weren’t any supporters and it’s a big source of income for them, while obviously the Premier League gets a big chunk of the money from television.
“We are always on the lookout for goals and hope we can do some good business, which is what we hope to do.
“We have a shopping list and we will try to invest wisely. We proved last season with those we recruited – like Ollie Watkins, Emi Martinez, Bertrand Traore and Matt Cash – that we are quite astute. Hope we can do more of the same.