Aston Villa's Emiliano Buendia has spoken out on his move to Bayer Leverkusen on loan until the end of the season.

The 28-year-old midfielder, who has also signed a contract extension at Villa Park, made the switch on Wednesday. Included is a £17m option to buy, which would make the move permanent in the summer.

Buendia joined Villa from Norwich City in the summer of 2021. Despite various injury concerns, including an anterior cruciate ligament injury which ruled him out of the entire 2023-24 season, he went on to make a total of 97 appearances in claret and blue, scoring 10 goals.

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Now an Argentinian international following his debut in February 2022, Buendia has recently found first-team football hard to come by as Unai Emery's Villans fly high in both the Premier League and UEFA Champions League.

He has decided to spend the rest of the current campaign at reigning Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen, and it's safe to say he's very much looking forward to it. Speaking to club media, Buendia described the move as "very appealing".

"The Bundesliga is very appealing to me," Buendia explained. "Bayer Leverkusen are the defending champions and in my view one of the best and most interesting teams in Europe.

"I’ve obviously seen Leverkusen’s performances in the Champions League in recent months and also their Europa League games last season. It’s a great team that plays attractive football. I’m sure I can help contribute to the club’s success.”