Aston Villa star Emi Buendia has taken to social media to express his joy after making his international debut for Argentina.
Buendia, who joined Villa in June 2021 from Norwich for a whopping £33m plus bonuses, began his club career in Spain and represented the European nation at U19 level.
But he was born in Argentina and switched his allegiance to the South American country in 2015 before representing their U20s.
Since then, he’s only played club football, but his stock has risen considerably in recent years and his performances were finally recognised with a call up to the senior Argentine squad in May 2021.
His debut wouldn’t come during that international block and he wasn’t involved when La Albiceleste defeated Chile 2-1 in Calama on Friday.
Aston Villa star Buendia makes Argentina bow
However, his first outing finally came overnight when he appeared as a substitute in a 1-0 win over Colombia in Cordoba.
Buendia replaced Giovani Lo Celso – who joined Villarreal on loan from Spurs on deadline day – with ten minutes plus injury time remaining.
The 25-year-old had just six touches of the ball, but he completed all three of his attempted passes, drew two fouls and won half of his four ground duels [SofaScore].
It was a solid albeit unspectacular start to his senior international career and he was visibly delighted after the final whistle.
He subsequently posted an emotional message on Twitter alongside a photo of him grinning on the pitch.
‘An indescribable happiness and a lot of pride,’ he wrote [translated].
‘A day that I will never forget. Go Argentina.’
Lionel Scaloni’s side are second in their ten-team World Cup Qualifying table, four points behind leaders Brazil and ten clear of third-placed Ecuador, who have played a game more.
Therefore, if Buendia can go back to Villa and impress before building on his debut during the final few qualifiers, he could be off to the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
