Aston Villa are to set to make Emiliano Buendía their record signing after Norwich accepted a bid of £30m plus add-ons that could take the final fee to £40m.
The midfielder, who received his first Argentina call-up last month, was the outstanding player in the Championship last season as his goals and assists helped Norwich return to the Premier League at the first attempt.
Buendía has been tracked by Arsenal and Villa for months but the latter have agreed a deal for the 24-year-old, whom Norwich signed from Getafe for £1.6m in 2018. On Saturday Buendía underwent a medical in Argentina, where he is preparing for the Copa América.
Norwich will be entitled to a sell-on fee as part of the deal and the add-ons are worth up to £10m. Buendía scored 15 goals and registered 16 assists in the second tier last season, creating more chances than any other player in the division.
This week Dean Smith, the Villa head coach, outlined the club’s aspirations by saying their owners are determined to break into the Premier League’s elite. Smith said Villa are keen to compete in the “upper echelons” of the top flight.
In terms of summer transfer business, he added: “We feel again let’s go and get quality over quantity. We proved last season with the ones we got in – Ollie Watkins, Emi Martínez, Bertrand Traoré and Matt Cash – that we were quite astute. Hopefully we can do more of the same.”
