Buonanotte chances of permanent Leeds transfer fade as Farke delivers ‘honest’ verdict on player’s ‘fight’

Facundo Buonanotte faces an increasingly difficult task of securing a permanent summer transfer to Leeds United after Daniel Farke delved into the player’s struggles and having explained why, despite his best efforts to offer him support, he’s “not expecting” the player to “cut the league to pieces”.

The Whites moved to sign Buonanotte at the second time of asking in the January window, having been turned down by the player in the summer after the Argentina international instead opted to join Chelsea on loan. But with the London side agreeing to cancel that arrangement at Buonanotte’s request, Leeds picked up the terms of that deal with his parent club Brighton, with the twice-capped star moving to Elland Road for the remainder of the current campaign.

And while that move to Leeds did not contain an option or obligation to make the move permanent, sources confirmed to TEAMtalk at the time that, as part of that loan arrangement, Leeds had made it clear to the 21-year-old that they would be open to turning the move into a permanent arrangement in the summer if the club can secure its place back among the elite for another season and should the player impress in West Yorkshire.

However, with just three appearances to his name at Leeds so far, amounting to just 69 minutes, that already looks a tall order for the player, who appears to be paying the price for his lack of match sharpness and an apparent struggle to adjust to the demands, both physically and tactically, set out at his temporary home.

And while still early on in his Leeds career and with time on his side to alter perceptions, his struggles were exemplified by a poor 45 outing against Birmingham City in the FA Cup fourth round at the weekend; a match in which Buonanotte was hooked after a very ineffective first-half display.

In the wake of that game and his struggle to make an impact, Farke has offered the player his support and having offered some sort of insight into Leeds’ expectations of their loan recruit…

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Farke delivers honest verdict on Buonanotte struggles

Admitting the player will need to dig deep to find his rhythm and form in an effort to force his way into the Leeds starting XI, Farke said of the player: “He’s a very young player who hasn’t played much football in recent years. You can’t just arrive and deliver straight away, you have to fight for your rhythm.”

In defence of the player, who made just eight appearances at Chelsea across the first half of the season, Farke added: “Of course, if you didn’t play much in the last month, it’s difficult to be at your very best physically. It’s also difficult regarding confidence level and rhythm of the game to be at your very best.”

Farke also indicated that Buonanotte was brought in after Jack Harrison was cleared to join Fiorentina on loan, and having admitted that he was never expecting the 21-year-old to cut the league to pieces.

”Sometimes the feeling of excitement is so high, you can rarely stand up to it. We haven’t signed Facundo to improve our starting XI straight away; we signed him to improve depth in our squad.”

He added: “We spoke openly about it, because we want to make sure we keep the pressure high on other options – [Noah] Okafor, [Brenden] Aaronson, [Willy] Gnonto and [Daniel] James.

“He hasn’t played for such a long time, so we give him the stage and support, but neither do we expect him to cut the league to pieces.”

And finally, when asked on the chances of a permanent move, a non-committal Farke added: “If it works out, great. If not, it’s a loan, so not a big risk.”

As for the sort of fee Brighton would be seeking, it’s understood that, with two years left on his deal, but with little chance of making the grade at the AMEX, the Seagulls would be seeking a fee in the region of £20m, plus.

However, given the start he has made to his career at Leeds, and with funds likely to be carefully considered once again at Elland Road this summer, at this moment in time, you’d have to say Buonanotte’s prospects of joining the Whites on a permanent deal do not look that great and Farke and Co may feel their cash is better spent elsewhere…

Elite Champ star wanted; Man City stance on James Trafford exit

One area of the side Leeds are very much expected to focus on is in goal, with Lucas Perri, despite arguably his best display in a Leeds shirt yet at Birmingham, having not done much to vindicate his large transfer fee.

To that end, our transfer correspondent, Fraser Fletcher, exclusively revealed back on February 5 that an ‘underwhelmed’ Farke is ready to dump the Brazilian and will target a new goalkeeper – of which James Trafford is a top target – this summer.

While Trafford is likely to be a man in high demand this summer, a number of other outlets have since picked up on our report of the Whites’ interest in the England international.

Furthermore, an update from sources earlier this week revealed Manchester City’s exit stance over their £27m summer signing – and it’s not necessarily bad news for the Whites.

In other news, reports claim the Whites have joined Tottenham and Manchester United in the race to sign one of the Championship’s best midfielders, with his price tag revealed by sources.

Elsewhere, Leeds United’s two major summer transfer priorities have been revealed by a trusted source, while TEAMtalk can reveal a third position they want to strengthen, and with director of football Adam Underwood charged with sorting out four important first-team contracts.

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