Leandro Bacuna

Leandro Bacuna
Bacuna playing for Aston Villa in 2016
Personal information
Full name Leandro Jones Johan Bacuna[1]
Date of birth (1991-08-21) 21 August 1991[2]
Place of birth Groningen, Netherlands
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)[2]
Positions
Team information
Current team
 Iğdır FK
Number 7
Youth career
2002–2009 Groningen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2013 Groningen 109 (14)
2013–2017 Aston Villa 116 (7)
2017–2019 Reading 59 (4)
2019–2022 Cardiff City 111 (4)
2022–2023 Watford 14 (0)
2023–2025 Groningen 64 (5)
2025 Bandırmaspor 19 (6)
2026– Iğdır FK 18 (1)
International career‡
2007–2008 Netherlands Antilles U20 5 (3)
2009–2010 Netherlands U19 10 (1)
2011–2013 Netherlands U21 10 (1)
2016– Curaçao 75 (16)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18:00, 22 August 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 22:00, 25 June 2026 (UTC)

Leandro Jones Johan Bacuna (born 21 August 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder or right-back for TFF First League club Iğdır FK.[3] Born in the Netherlands, he represents and captains the Curaçao national team. He is their joint most-capped player along with Eloy Room.

Club career

Groningen

On 30 October 2009, Bacuna made his first team debut for Groningen in an Eredivisie match against PSV.[4] Bacuna has also played for Groningen's youth teams. On 6 November 2009, he scored his first goal for the first team in a league match against Heracles Almelo, an eventual 4–1 victory for Groningen.[5]

Aston Villa

It was announced on 13 June 2013 that Bacuna had signed a three-year contract with Premier League club Aston Villa. Handed the number 7 shirt, Bacuna impressed many with his debut season for the Villans, despite constantly playing out of position at right back.[6][7] Bacuna scored his first Premier League goal on 28 September at home against Manchester City. His second goal came from a free-kick in the claret and blues' 2–0 victory over Cardiff City. He continued his goalscoring run with goals against West Bromwich Albion, Everton and Norwich.

In the 2014–15 season, Bacuna found it harder to break into the starting line-up, starting just one game in the Premier League. On 15 February 2015, he scored the first of two Villa goals in the fifth round of the FA Cup in a 2–1 win over Leicester City, taking the club into the quarter-finals.

On 20 August 2015, Bacuna signed a new long-term contract with the club.[8]

Reading

On 13 August 2017, Bacuna moved to Reading, signing a four-year contract.[9] He scored his first goal for Reading in an EFL Cup tie against Millwall on 22 August 2017.[10]

Cardiff City

On 31 January 2019, Bacuna moved to Premier League side Cardiff City, signing a four-and-a-half-year deal for a transfer fee believed to be around £3 million.[11][12] On 10 June 2022, Cardiff announced Bacuna would leave the club when his contract expired on 30 June.[13]

Watford

On 14 December 2022, Bacuna signed for Championship club Watford on a contract until the end of the 2022–23 season.[14]

Iğdır FK

On 6 January 2026, he was transferred to Iğdır FK, signing a one and half year contract.[15]

International career

Born in the Netherlands to parents of Afro-Curaçaoan descent, Bacuna played for the Netherlands Antilles under-20 side, as well as various youth Dutch teams. He received his first Curaçao national team call-up in March 2016,[16] earning his first cap in a 1–0 loss to Barbados.[17]

Bacuna captained Curaçao in their tournament debut at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[18]

Personal life

He is the brother of fellow professional football players Juninho Bacuna and Johnsen Bacuna.[19] Leandro and Juninho both played as starting midfielders for Curaçao in the 2026 World Cup.[20]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 22 August 2026[21][22]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Groningen 2009–10 Eredivisie 20221—2[a]0243
2010–11 Eredivisie 24030—4[a]2312
2011–12 Eredivisie 32710—00337
2012–13 Eredivisie 33530—2[a]0385
Total 1091491—7212517
Aston Villa 2013–14[23] Premier League 3551020—385
2014–15[24] Premier League 1904110—241
2015–16[25] Premier League 3112020—351
2016–17[26] Championship 3011000—311
2017–18[27] Championship 1000000010
Total 11678150001298
Reading 2017–18[27] Championship 3313021—382
2018–19[28] Championship 2630020—283
Total 6043041—665
Cardiff City 2018–19[28] Premier League 1100000—110
2019–20[29] Championship 41120002[b]0451
2020–21[30] Championship 4121010—432
2021–22[31] Championship 1510000—151
Total 10942010201144
Watford 2022–23[32] Championship 1401000—150
Groningen 2023–24 Eerste Divisie 33 1 5 0 — — 38 1
2024–25 Eredivisie 31 4 2 1 — — 33 5
Total 64 5 7 1 — — 71 6
Bandırmaspor 2025–26 TFF First League 19 6 0 0 — — 19 6
Iğdır FK 2025–26 TFF First League 16 3 3 0 — — 19 3
2026–27 TFF First League 2 0 0 0 — — 2 0
Total 18 3 3 0 — — 21 3
Career total 509433771019256049
  1. 1 2 3 Appearance(s) in Eredivisie play-offs
  2. ↑ Appearance(s) in Championship play-offs

International

As of match played 25 June 2026[33]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Curaçao 201664
201791
201854
2019112
202182
202251
202360
202471
2025111
202660
Total7516
As of match played 25 June 2026. Curaçao score listed first, score column indicates score after each Bacuna goal.[33]
International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 7 June 2016Ergilio Hato Stadium, Willemstad, Curaçao4 U.S. Virgin Islands4–07–02017 Caribbean Cup qualification
2 5 October 20165 Antigua and Barbuda1–03–0
3 11 October 2016Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium, Bayamón, Puerto Rico6 Puerto Rico2–24–2
4 4–2
5 10 October 2017Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar15 Qatar1–12–1Friendly
6 26 March 2018Ergilio Hato Stadium, Willemstad, Curaçao17 Bolivia1–01–0
7 10 September 201818 Grenada4–010–02019–20 CONCACAF Nations League qualification
8 7–0
9 12 October 2018IMG Academy, Bradenton, United States19 U.S. Virgin Islands3–05–0
10 5 June 2019Chang Arena, Buriram, Thailand22 India3–13–12019 King's Cup
11 21 June 2019BBVA Stadium, Houston, United States25 Honduras1–01–02019 CONCACAF Gold Cup
12 28 March 2021Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala33 Cuba1–02–12022 FIFA World Cup qualification
13 5 June 2021Estadio El Trébol, Guatemala City, Guatemala34 British Virgin Islands3–08–0
14 6 June 2022Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano, San Pedro Sula, Honduras41 Honduras1–02–12022–23 CONCACAF Nations League A
15 9 September 2024Kirani James Athletic Stadium, St. George's, Grenada53 Saint Martin3–04–02024–25 CONCACAF Nations League B
16 13 November 2025Bermuda National Stadium, Devonshire Parish, Bermuda67 Bermuda1–07–02026 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Aston Villa

Curaçao[35]

References

  1. ↑ "Barclays Premier League Squad Numbers 2013/14". Premier League. 16 August 2013. Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Premier League Player Profile Leandro Bacuna". Barclays Premier League. 2016. Archived from the original on 30 December 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "LEANDRO JONES JOHAN BACUNA - Player Details TFF". www.tff.org. Retrieved 7 February 2026.
  4. ↑ "Cookies op VI.nl".
  5. ↑ Holland, Æresdivisionen – Politiken.dk Archived 27 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ↑ "Groninger Bacuna wordt collega van Vlaar in Engeland". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 13 June 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  7. ↑ "Bacuna tipped to be "a real asset" after sealing Villa transfer". AVFC. 13 June 2013. Archived from the original on 15 June 2013.
  8. ↑ "Leandro Bacuna: New long-term Aston Villa deal for Dutchman". BBC Sport. 20 August 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
  9. ↑ "Bacuna joins the Royals!". Reading F.C. 13 August 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  10. ↑ "Reading 3–1 Millwall". BBC. 22 August 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  11. ↑ "Deadline Day: Bacuna is a Bluebird". Cardiff City F.C. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  12. ↑ Blanche, Phil (31 January 2019). "Leandro Bacuna signs in £3m deal from Reading". The Independent. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  13. ↑ "2021/22 Retained List | Cardiff". www.cardiffcityfc.co.uk. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  14. ↑ "Official: Bacuna Signs On". www.watfordfc.com. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  15. ↑ "Alagöz Holding Iğdır Futbol Kulübü". X. Retrieved 11 January 2026.
  16. ↑ "Aston Villa defender Leandro Bacuna gets first senior international call-up for Curacao".
  17. ↑ "Villans on international duty – Part One". 28 March 2016.
  18. ↑ "Leandro Bacuna: Stars of Soccer, World Cup 2026". The New York Times. 26 June 2026. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  19. ↑ "Ook tweede Bacuna wint de beker" (in Dutch).
  20. ↑ "Fifa World Cup 2026: What you need to know about Curacao". BBC Sport. 5 June 2026. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  21. ↑ Leandro Bacuna at Soccerway. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  22. ↑ "Leandro Bacuna". Soccerbase. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  23. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  24. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  25. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  26. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  27. 1 2 "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  28. 1 2 "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
  29. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  30. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  31. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  32. ↑ "Games played by Leandro Bacuna in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  33. 1 2 "Bacuna, Leandro". National Football Teams. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
  34. ↑ Callow, James (30 May 2015). "Alexis Sanchez lifts Arsenal to new heights against Villa". The FA. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  35. ↑ "Leandro Bacuna – Career Honours". Soccerway.
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