After a period of upheaval at Elland Road, things seem to be settling down nicely at Leeds United for Daniel Farke and his squad.
The German has seen to it that the all whites have climbed up to fifth in the table, just a point behind Preston North End in third.
Though both Leicester City and Ipswich Town are miles ahead of the chasing pack, there’s plenty of time left for them to be reeled in, and Farke, who has experience of guiding a team to promotion from the Championship, might well fancy his chances at this point.
One player who won’t be involved in any promotion battle is Rasmus Kristensen.
He was one of a glut of players that either left on loan or permanently whilst the summer transfer window was still open.
Spending the 2023/24 season at Roma was expected to be an enjoyable experience for the 26-year-old, but having been left out of the Giallorossi’s Europa League squad has clearly left a sour taste.
“For me, he’s (Mourinho) a coach who is at the very top. So, of course, I wanted to try to work with him. So far, it has been totally cool and educational,” he said to TV2 Sport.
“Of course, I was worn out by that (not being selected for the Europa League squad) but I understood the rules of financial fair play. I wasn’t surprised that it was a right back they chose. It would have been more controversial to leave out Lukaku.
“He explained to me that he was sorry, and he understood well if I was angry and disappointed. But that was the way it had to be. There’s not much I can do about it.
“Fortunately, I have played in Serie A matches that have taken place. In that way it has been okay, but of course it is annoying.”
Despite his obvious disappointment, Kristensen will just have to knuckle down and get over it because there’s a long Serie A season left with everything still in play at this point.
The likelihood of a return to Leeds at season’s end appears distant, but if he’s unable to shake the feeling of being left on the sidelines, he might well be welcomed back to Yorkshire with open arms.