'Change the situation' - De Zerbi confirms plan for £10m Brighton ace struggling for minutes amid fresh loan talk

The Argentina international has found himself further down the pecking order this season which has prompted talk of a possible loan for the talented 18-year-old.

Buonanotte impressed at the tail end of last term and played a role in Brighton’s sixth place finish and securing Europa League football for the first time in their history. He made 13 Premier League appearances, six of which were starts and scored one with two assists.

The former Rosario Central playmaker joined Brighton for around £10m last January on a four-year deal and perhaps played more minutes than expected last term due to a number of injuries and fatigue within the squad.

This season however could be more problematic for Buonanotte as Solly March – who operates down the right flank – is fit once more following his hamstring issues, while new arrivals such as Joao Pedro and Simon Adingra further increase competition in attacking areas.

"I would like to keep him with us," said De Zerbi, who is keen to build a squad capable of competing in the Premier League, Europa League, FA Cup and the Carabao Cup. “But I have to be honest and clear. With young players, you have to find the right moment to put them on the pitch.

"Facundo in the last games of the season was important, but March didn’t play, so that can change the situation. I believe in Facundo a lot and I think he can become important, but I can’t give him my word that he will play 50, 40, 30 games. Maybe he wants to play on loan, I don’t know."

The improvement in March under De Zerbi has been quite remarkable. March netted in the 4-1 victory against Luton Town last Saturday and in doing so became Brighton's top scorer in the Premier League since De Zerbi's arrival. It was the 28-year-old’s eighth goal in 28 top flight appearances. Prior to that he had netted just four times in 148 games.

De Zerbi is huge fan of March’s talents but insists there is room for improvement: “Solly could play faster. Sometimes he kept the ball too much time. But Solly is a great player and I am happy for his goal because he started very well. He has to fix his target to score 15 goals because he and [Kaoru] Mitoma if they score, our target is closer.”