‘Something has changed’ – Leeds United player refused to be ‘demoralised’ and is fighting back

When Rasmus Kristensen arrived at AS Roma on loan in the summer, there wasn’t much fanfare around the Leeds United player.

Jose Mourinho wanted to get signings in, and with Roma facing a challenging budget, those above him worked to bring in loan deals and found Leeds to be a cooperative club.

The Serie A side also took Diego Llorente, but Kristensen initially failed to live up to the Spaniard’s standards. He got less and less time on the pitch and the criticism in the Italian media was unforgiving.

At times it felt like outright mockery towards the Leeds United owned player, and the consensus was that the loan was a complete failure and Kristensen was nowhere near Roma’s level.

In that situation, some players would have near given up and waited for their return to the parent club. However, as Il Romanista report, the 26-year-old refused to be ‘demoralised’.

Instead, he doubled down and worked even harder, wanting to prove that he has what it takes. Mourinho was impressed enough to give him further chances and recently, perhaps surprisingly, Kristensen has been trusted to play on the right side of a three man central defence.

Il Romanista say ‘something has changed recently’ and the versatile defender is ‘starting to become a guarantee for his teammates’, someone who can be relied upon.

They add: ‘Mou bet on him by including him in the defensive trio, relying on his physicality and defensive intelligence, which not everyone initially believed he had.’

From Leeds United’s perspective it all helps revalue the player ahead of the summer, or perhaps even provides a reason to keep Kristensen should the Whites seal promotion to the Premier League.