I never thought I would say this, but I was (slightly) annoyed to find out Rasmus Kristensen was missing Roma’s trip to Fiorentina, a game I was attending. I’d gone full John Candy to get to Florence, just to be denied a chance to reunite with everyone’s favourite right-back. After all, I felt like we had left things on a rather sour note.

Last May, I joined the masses in telling him he was not fit to wear the shirt. Several months later, here I am, feeling aggrieved that I won’t see him wear the giallorosso of Roma, who are not playing Millwall and Plymouth, but chasing Champions League qualification and a third consecutive European final.

Speaking of European finals, just as Sam Allardyce’s Leeds were going down in flames against Spurs, our old pal Diego Llorente was in Budapest, preparing for the Europa League final. Llorente was our equivalent of 2008 Tony Blair, sitting in JPMorgan Chase offices while Gordon Brown dealt with the financial crash.

I like to imagine Diego was still in the team WhatsApp group. Notifications muted, but still dipping in to read the drama. As Leeds were relegated, he was losing on penalties to Sevilla at the end of a half-season during which he showed flashes of 2021 Llorente, but also struggled with injuries and took a couple of hammerings from some of Serie A’s more ‘old school’ centre-forwards.

Most Leeds fans expected Llorente’s Roman holiday would end after that final loss, especially given that getting any Italian club to part with cash for Premier League talent has become increasingly difficult, but Victor Orta’s Loan Clause Special allowed him, and Kristensen, a gap year in Rome.

Roma’s 2023/24 season has been afflicted by the Mourinho Itch; that insatiable desire within José to destroy everything in his third season at any club. The stifling of creativity, the media psychodrama and touchline antics wear thin after a while, even at a club where he delivered a first major trophy in over a decade.

By mid-January, Mourinho had been sacked and was replaced by Daniele De Rossi, a club legend with minimal coaching experience. Get Daniele in and play the kids, or something like that, appeared to be the message. The difference between Eddie Gray and De Rossi is that, where the former had Jody Morris and Lamine Sakho, the latter has Paulo Dybala and Romelu Lukaku.

De Rossi had Roma playing well prior to this game. Six wins from seven in Serie A, plus a penalty win over Feyenoord before a 4-0 thrashing of Brighton in Europe. Fiorentina sat 8th, with their minds focused on the Conference League and Coppa Italia.

In the city that acted as the epicentre of the Renaissance, I scolded myself for spending any time at all thinking about Rasmus Kristensen. Why ponder someone who was a non-entity as Leeds’ right-back, when I could stare at the magnificent Cathedral of Santa Maria in Fiore? Ah, its dome would only remind me of his faux skinhead anyway.

Two friends and I found ourselves in stereotypically atypical Italian weather, which is to say rain, on this Florentine Sunday. Forced indoors, we took to a local spot that promised meat, cheese and shelter. In this most cultured of settings, we lowered the tone with talk of Fiorentina-Roma, our Belfast accents undoubtedly confusing the locals who must have been wondering why these three had stumbled into their casual Sunday lunch spot, drenched and talking football.

There are few better cities in the world to watch football than Florence. Some more ‘staunch’ fans may scoff at the idea of football tourism, as the concept of the day tripper is a horrid byproduct of the TV era to them. Still, this was a cheaper trip than a London away day plus better food (and drink) and a ticket for £23. Add that the entire city centre is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and you can drink in the stands at the stadium. The last one is just a little bonus that means, should you fancy a half-time refreshment, you need not waterboard yourself to get it down before shuffling back to your seat.

With Llorente named in Roma’s starting eleven and lined up against Andrea Belotti, a streetfighter of a centre-forward who signed on loan from Roma in January, we were all set for Sunday night football under the lights. Roma dominated the early exchanges, but it was Fiorentina who took the lead in the 16th minute, Luca Ranieri heading in from a corner. No relation, before you open Google.

Fiorentina dominated the rest of the first half, with Belotti an eternally frustrating presence for the Roma defence. He arrived at Roma in summer 2022 on a free transfer after several years as the big fish in a small pond at Torino. Goals, but never proven at the top. Think of him as Rickie Lambert minus the tinfoil hat. The big move did not work out and now he finds himself rejuvenating his career in Florence. He came into this game with plenty to prove, and poor Diego got the brunt of it.

Roma equalised early in the second half through Houssem Aouar, but the home side responded almost immediately. As a byline cross from Biraghi floated towards the penalty spot, Belotti escaped his tussle with Llorente, who fell over and allowed him to head the ball through the gap vacated by the fallen defender, directly into the path of Rolando Mandragora, who made it 2-1.

Belotti then won a penalty from Paredes with ten minutes to go, having had his shirt pulled after turning him inside the Roma box, but Biraghi’s attempt was saved. The game carried on and entered its final act, with the Roman assault upon the goal behind which their considerable away support was standing, baying for a successful salvage mission after spending the best part of two hours making disparaging remarks about their hosts.

As the clock ticked past the final of four added minutes, a botched Roma corner was half-cleared, but the ball found its way back to Lorenzo Pellegrini, who sent it back towards the Fiorentina box. Roma defender Evan Ndicka nodded it down into the path of none other than Diego Llorente, who let the ball bounce across his body before smashing it into the top corner from around eight yards. An old man stood, staring at his watch, expecting the whistle to sound any second, only to hear that dreaded whoosh of the ball hitting the back of the Fiorentina net.

Time was up. Roma had scored. The stadium emptied, minus the caged away fans and three stunned boys asking: “Was that actually Diego Llorente?” Had we flown all this way to see some football and maybe give Rasmus Kristensen the rest of the telling off he escaped in May 2023, only to witness Diego Llorente score a great goal in the dying seconds?

This was vintage Llorente. Ran ragged by an old teammate for ninety minutes, he still managed to pop up with an improbable equaliser. An impressively confusing and/or frustrating performance in which he managed to look flustered right up until the moment he was needed the most, when he finished like an elite striker. Perhaps that’s why Lukaku forcefully pushed him to the ground when celebrating the goal.

Overall, it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening of football in Florence, and it feels like everyone is in a better place than twelve months ago. Back in Leeds, folks are having fun, seeing the team win every week. In Rome, Diego and Rasmus are (presumably) taking their Vespas down to Trastevere before tucking into a carbonara. They live the sweet life now, not worried about relegation or having to pretend to listen to Jesse Marsch’s pyramid scheme salesman chat. Perhaps, we’ll see each other again, when Roma fail to cough up the cash for both in July, but I would rather it be in the Europa League in a few years’ time. ⬢