Journalist Stuart Hodge has tipped Emiliano Buendia to end up playing for a Champions League club.

What is Buendia's current situation?

Whilst Buendia was a great servant for Norwich in the Championship, he must prove himself in the Premier League before he gets talked about at an even-higher level.

He's made a bright start to his Villa career since making the £38m switch earlier this summer, but the Argentine, who's expected to return for the visit of Everton this weekend following his international fiasco, has been directly involved in just nine goals in 39 top-flight appearances.

Buendia is already off the mark in a Villa shirt after netting in the recent draw with Brentford but must hit the ground running once he returns to the team and then start repaying the club-record fee Dean Smith's side forked out for him in the coming months.

What has Hodges said about Buendia?

Despite his relative inexperience at Premier League level, Hodges has told GIVEMESPORT that he expects Buendia to go right to the very top:

"He's going to step up from Aston Villa, unless an injury derails him, he's going to be a Champions League player for a top club by the time he hits the peak of his career, I'm absolutely certain."

Is Buendia good enough to play in the Champions League?

Buendia has proved himself as a player good enough to score goals and create them, with the Argentine directly involved in 52 in only 77 second-tier outings for the Canaries, but he's some way off the level required before being considered for Europe's elite competition.

However, Buendia will surely take inspiration from watching former Villa captain Jack Grealish go from a Championship level player to a Manchester City and England regular in the space of two years, with Grealish making his Champions League debut against RB Leipzig on Wednesday night.