Jose Mourinho has issued a verdict on Leeds United loanee Diego Llorente ahead of Roma’s Europa League tie with Feyenoord on Thursday.
The Roma boss’ comments have been reported by Tuttomercatoweb. And it seems that Mourinho has been impressed with how Diego Llorente has adapted in the Italian capital.
It certainly seemed to take Llorente some time to find his feet in Italy. He left on loan in January after a difficult time at Elland Road. And it says a lot about his spell with Leeds that it is probably fair to say that many supporters are hoping that Roma take up the option to sign the Spaniard.
Mourinho praises Diego Llorente
That did not appear to be on the cards when he barely played a minute during his first six Serie A games with the Giallorossi. But he seems to have turned a corner more recently.
Llorente has started Roma’s last three games in the top-flight. And they have won all three games. In fact, they have not conceded a single goal.
And ahead of their Europa League tie with Arne Slot’s Feyenoord this week, Mourinho suggested that he is very happy with how Llorente is playing.
“Of course they are important. Llorente and [Edoardo] Bove need to grow. Bove has no history as a starter in Serie A and grows every game, he is more and more of a player even if he can make mistakes every now and then,” he said, as reported by Tuttomercatoweb.
“Llorente already has a great deal of experience. He needed time to learn how to play with us. When our game arrived it was weird for him. Now he already plays with stability and is perfectly integrated.”
It feels as though it is best for all parties that Llorente impresses with Roma. He definitely had some high points for Leeds. On his day, he was excellent.
The problem was that his bad performances could be so poor. And the Llorente you would get could seemingly change with each passing minute.
Obviously, Leeds are not exactly thriving without him. But again, it says a lot that fans are not yet yearning for Llorente to return after two games in which 11 goals have been conceded.
Leeds will reportedly accept £13.25 million for Llorente this summer. Hopefully, he continues to impress and convinces Roma to keep him beyond this season.