We are shining a light on the Premier League players who perhaps have not had the praise they deserve for their 2019/20 season performances...
Tuesday 21 April 2020 16:26, UK
With Norwich currently propping up the Premier League table and being the joint-lowest scorers, you might be surprised to know that they have one of the most creative players in the division this season.
Emiliano Buendia, a former Spain and Argentina youth international, has been a rare bright spot in another challenging top tier season for the team.
The expansive form which brought him 20 goal involvements in 38 Championship appearances last season - only Brentford's Said Benrahma (14) created more goals then Buendia's 12 - would be a challenge to replicate in a side that invested under £1.5m ahead of the current campaign.
He answered any potential doubters with immediate effect, assisting four goals in his first five Premier League appearances - coming in defeats against Liverpool and Chelsea, and twice in the shock 3-2 win v Manchester City at Carrow Road.
Although his assists have come at a more intermittent rate as the season continued, he has showed the creative capabilities to be up there with the finest...
The downturn in his assists is not for the want of trying - over the course of the season he has created more than one in five of his side's chances - a higher proportion than any other player in the top flight...
Buendia is just one assist shy of equalling Norwich's Premier League record in a 38-game season, currently held by Wes Hoolahan in 2015-16.
The hope will be that others can keep up their end of the bargain if he carries on creating chances - no player in the league has made more in a single game this season than Buendia's nine against Wolves just before Christmas. For the record, none were taken that day in a 2-1 defeat.
The creative element of his game is justifiably the talking point for a player in their inaugural Premier League season, although that is not the only attribute where the 23-year-old has stood out for Daniel Farke's side this season, showing there is far more than a single string to his bow...
Buendia has twice suffered relegation in his short career - with nine games to play, Norwich are six points from safety and remain odds-on favourites to add to his unwanted list of demotions.
However, it is unlikely Buendia will be short of suitors if he wishes to carry on his Premier League adventure elsewhere.
