La Liga-leading displays show Leeds made huge Facundo Buonanotte error

Facundo Buonanotte's loan spell at Elland Road last season resigned him to Leeds United pub quiz legend.

Indeed, his four total appearances and mere 81 Premier League minutes spent donning the Whites shirt were as forgettable as they come.

This wasn't expected to be the case either, as he'd turned out 31 times in the Premier League for Leicester in 2024-25.

On top of that, he'd played eight times for Chelsea in the first half of last term, scoring once and providing two assits.

Alas, Buonanotte's Leeds career never got off the ground, and he returned to Brighton this summer with many Whites fans forgetting he was even at Elland Road.

But the Seagulls, and indeed Elche, clearly believe there's a talent worth fighting for in the Argentine, and they may just be right.

Where Facundo Buonanotte is leading all La Liga rivals in 2026-27

Confirmed at the beginning of August, Buonanotte left Brighton again to join Spanish La Liga side Elche on loan for the 2026-27 season.

The Alicante-based outfit finished 15th in their first season back in the Spanish top flight last term.

Currently, Martin Anselmi's side sit 18th and inside the relegation zone after seven games played, winning just the once.

Despite all that, Buonanotte has still found a way to put up numbers that trump the vast majority, and in some cases all, of his La Liga rivals.

Per FotMob, no attacking midfielder in La Liga this season has a higher expected goals (xG) per game than Buonanotte's 0.46.

Meanwhile, his 1.64 shots on target and 0.52 xG on target per game rank him in the top 2.7 percentile of all players in his position.

The 21-year-old also places in the leading 7.1 per cent for his 0.41 goals per game average, as well as the top 4.5 per cent for his 3.29 shots on goal per 90.

In four games he's also completed three successful dribbles, won six tackles, made 12 recoveries and won 11 duels.

So, why is Buonanotte shining so bright with Elche, and why does the secret perhaps lie in what he was never really given with Leeds?

How Elche showed instant belief in Buonanotte

For any player, but especially a young one like Buonanotte, the key to extracting the best out of them can often come via clear signs of trust.

Indeed, the attacking midfielder was never really a player Daniel Farke seemed to hold much of that with, and that was reflected in his game time.

Elche, on the other hand, provided Buonanotte with a clear sign of trust and belief from the moment he arrived in Spain.

They've handed him the number 10 shirt for the season, which comes with the natural expectation for anyone who wears it to pull the creative strings for the team.

Speaking via The Argus, Argentine World Cup winner and Elche legend Marcelo Trobbiani also made it clear what the expectation was of him with that shirt.

“This shirt. The green stripe. The ten. Wearing this shirt for Elche isn’t for just anybody," he said.

“Now it’s down to you to make your history, to feel this shirt and defend these colours.

“Facu, from someone who knows what it means to wear the No.10, I want to welcome you. Make this your moment. Make the ten make history again.”