Diego Llorente aims out-of-the-blue dig at Leeds United after leaving Elland Road permanently in the summer for Real Betis

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Diego Llorente last played for Leeds United in January 2023 before two loans and then permanently leaving in the summer – but that has not stopped him aiming a dig at his old employers.

The Spain international was an £18m signing at Leeds back in the summer of 2020 after promotion to the Premier League. Leeds spent big after promotion, also bringing in the likes of Rodrigo and Robin Koch.

While Rodrigo and Koch played a key part over the next three years, Llorente struggled with injuries and over the course of four years on the books at Leeds, the centre-back managed just 59 Leeds appearances.

Despite signing a new deal for Leeds towards the end of 2022, Llorente left in January 2023 to go on loan to Roma until the summer before renewing his loan at Roma for the 2023-24 season, playing 54 times.

• READ MORE: £40m playmaker linked with Leeds in summer has only played 20 league minutes

Diego Llorente aims strange dig at Leeds United in interview

Then, last summer, Llorente finally left Leeds for a fee less than £3m, to join Betis. The defender has done well at Betis under Manuel Pellegrini, finally showing why Leeds decided to spend nearly £20m on him.

Speaking to Diario De Sevilla, Llorente decided to compare the atmosphere in the Betis changing room with the one he experienced at Leeds – and in a dig at his old club, said it is much better with Pellegrini.

“It was a very important decision, and I wanted to know where I was going. This time it was a bit the other way around, people from Betis who contacted me. Then I did speak with Marc Roca and Pablo Fornals.

“They told me what I knew they were going to tell me, that it was a great dressing room and that there was great ambition to achieve important things. It was a bit the opposite than with Leeds,” Llorente said.

Llorente’s departure was a big hit for Leeds’ Financial Fairplay

While Leeds made big profits in terms of Financial Fairplay in the summer, there were some losses too. Leeds sold eight men, three of which turned out to be losses in the eyes of Profit & Sustainability Rules.

Leeds could make more losses in terms of Financial Fairplay next summer. Junior Firpo is out of contract at the end of the season having been bought for £13m from Barcelona back in the summer of 2021.

Graham Smyth expects Patrick Bamford to leave, and he will not command a fee anything like the £10m figure Leeds paid Middlesbrough to sign him in 2018. Others are expected to be sold on next summer.