Why Facundo Buonanotte Represents Everything Wrong With Chelsea's Ownership

Facundo Buonanotte Recalled From Chelsea and Loaned to Leeds - Here's What It Says About Chelsea's Ownership

They say to never fall in love with a loan player.

Well, in the case of Facundo Buonanotte, Chelsea fans weren't even given the chance.

The attacking midfielder has had his season-long loan at Stamford Bridge cut short by parent club Brighton and, in turn, been sent up the M1 to Leeds, after a severe lack of playing time.

🚨 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚: Leeds United have reached a verbal agreement to sign Facundo Buonanotte on loan until the end of the season from Brighton.

His loan at Chelsea is OVER.

(Source: @FabrizioRomano)

What a weird transfer that was in the first place. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/P7h7WQebLv

— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) January 15, 2026

The Argentina international made a grand total of eight appearances for Chelsea, playing just 45 minutes of Premier League football, despite being an exciting young talent who needs game time to maintain his progression.

Brighton obviously weren't impressed and terminated the deal with the Blues as a result, and he now joins a side for the rest of the season that should offer him the playing time he desires.

The hierarchy at Chelsea have been left with egg on their face by the whole saga, and it is yet another embarrassing misstep made by the West London side since Todd Boehly's takeover in 2022.

Facundo Buonanotte gonna be one of them players that in 10 years time will be the “only 1% of Chelsea fans will know this player” in them little TikTok quizzes

— ٓ (@muxsin2003) January 15, 2026

The Culture Club

Immediately after purchasing ownership of the club four years ago, BlueCo, the company fronted by Boehly that now owned Chelsea, oversaw a complete cleanse of culture at Chelsea.

Members of staff who had been there for decades left, including legendary goalkeeper Petr Cech, and the feelings around the club shifted.

They even sacked Thomas Tuchel because of 'differences of opinion' after tensions had constantly risen, replacing him with Graham Potter in a move that didn't really end up paying off.

Even this was a huge statement in altering how the club operates - under Roman Abramovich, Chelsea would have undoubtedly acquired an already proven serial winner to maintain their challenge at the peak of every competition.

Instead, under Boehly and co., they had brought in a young coach with a lot of potential, who was yet to win anything or compete at the very highest levels.

He didn't even complete a season with the club, obviously winning nothing, before being sacked just months into a new five-year contract. Quite the payout for Potter.

Not only was the lack of a plan a disgrace, but the alleged involvement of James Corden in bringing back Frank Lampard to replace Potter left fans completely outraged, with the comedian rumoured to have been approached for advice by the club's owners.

Other embarrassments have ravaged the club since, from Thiago Silva's wife questioning the club on X to the attempts to buy each other out of ownership last season, which have left many questioning the competence of BlueCo and Clearlake as owners of the club.

What's worse, though, and has raised the most concerns from the entire footballing world, is the transfer policy Chelsea have adopted under this ownership.

More Money, More Problems

Since the transition in ownership to BlueCo, Chelsea have spent a total amount on transfers that is so high that you could purchase three-quarters of the players in the Championship.

Their spending has totalled just shy of £1.5 billion.

What have they had to show for such free spending? One Club World Cup (a decent achievement, but a glorified pre-season tournament realistically), one Conference League title, one 12th-place finish and six different managers.

The transfer policy adopted by the ownership is believed to be the main reason that big managers refuse to join the club, and is often the reason why those who are there end up having a breakdown in relationships with those above them, including Tuchel and, more recently, Enzo Maresca.

To call it reckless spending doesn't even do the madness justice.

There were always signs.

Julian Nagelsmann walked away from the opportunity to join Chelsea due to issues with our transfer strategy, instability, and work conditions.

Chelsea pushed away Luis Enrique because we refused to allow him more input on our transfers. https://t.co/TgLP6sgU0a

— Bri (@breezy_345) December 31, 2025

Honestly I don't think there could've been a more fitting start to this Chelsea "project" than spending 120m on Enzo 6 months after Benfica signed him for 12m

— Bd@irB@ll (@Bd_irB_ll) January 1, 2026

Their willingness to spend cash at an unprecedented rate has Chelsea fans worried about the implications of the Financial Fair Play rules, as they've been watching their club exploit loopholes for years now and are starting to worry that they'll fly too close to the sun in Icarus fashion.

Even beyond that, the general decision-making at the club has been woeful. There are even complaints about the lack of revenue being brought in by the fact that they haven't had a sponsor on the front of their shirts for the last three seasons, which is often a strong moneymaker for clubs.

• No stadium expansion plans
• No FOS sponsor in 3 years
• 4 managers in 4 years
• Refuse to sign players that can win now
• Spending money on kids and putting all the pressure on the manager to bring the best out of them
• Micromanaging the coach

Chelsea FC.

— Mod (@CFCMods) December 30, 2025

It's easy to wonder what comes next for Chelsea as the Liam Rosenior era begins and if he can find a way to be more successful than his predecessors under a confusing transfer policy and immense pressure to turn young players into experienced stars.

Chelsea fans will probably be watching through their fingers for a while, but this should be an entertaining time for the neutral. Can they return to their old winning ways and re-establish themselves as a superpower under BlueCo? Or will they follow in the footsteps of Man United and look like nothing more than a long and continuous car crash?