Florence is the perfect city for a renaissance. Jack Harrison certainly hopes so. On loan at Fiorentina from Leeds United, the 29-year-old winger enjoys strolling through the famous city and meeting enthusiastic La Viola fans.
“Some of the Ultras recognise me straight away,” Harrison says, “and they’re like, ‘die’, ‘die’ (come on, come on)! Let’s go, andiamo’. It’s a nice energy!”
They can see Harrison working hard to help Fiorentina slowly rise away from the fringes of the Serie A relegation zone and also to a Europa Conference League quarter-final against Crystal Palace.
Florence, via New York. And Leeds
(Image credit: Getty Images)
“It reminds me a little bit of New York, the energy and the passion the people have here for the club and the way they chant in the stadium,” Harrison says over Zoom from his apartment in Florence.
The Ultras in the Curva Fiesole of the Artemio Franchi stadium make an impressive sight with their flags and scarves. “It’s definitely special to see,” Harrison says.
Fiorentina celebrated 50 years of the Ultras movement with a tifo display at the Artemio-Franchi stadium in Florence in 2023 (Image credit: Getty Images)
He has settled swiftly. Harrison usually does. “I adapt quickly,” he says. We first met when I was covering a game at New York City FC. He was the English teenager who’d been in the academies of Liverpool and Manchester United, decided to pursue another pathway overseas, and moved to the Land of Opportunity aged 14.
Within four years, Harrison was sharing a locker room with Frank Lampard and Andrea Pirlo at New York City FC. “Everyone makes a big deal about me leaving my mum when I was 14 to go to New York, but I was more excited about the journey,” Harrison continues.
“Ever since I was young, I’ve always loved travelling and exploring. I like to think that I can go into any environment and find a way to thrive and succeed.
“England is definitely home. I have my family there, and that’s the core roots of my history. I have a lot of strong ties in the US, most of my friends are there. I always enjoy going back there for training in the summer, meeting up again with all the friends. It’s a bit of a strange dynamic, a mixture between the two (England and US).
You may like
Harrison celebrates with Frank Lampard during a 5-1 win over Colorado Rapids for New York City FC in 2016 (Image credit: Getty Images)
“I know a lot of people in England that just want to stay there for their whole lives, maybe go on holiday to Spain or Tenerife for a week, and then they’re happy to go back to England. For myself, I’ve always liked to travel, so being open to this idea of coming to Italy, it’s been amazing so far, the weather, the food, and getting used to the language and understanding that most people are around 15 minutes late for everything! It’s much more laid-back than people in England!
“I hadn’t actually travelled to Italy before, just one time on a football trip with Man United academy to Milan. I’m trying to make the most of it whilst I’m here. Florence is a beautiful city. Just walking around the city, being around Piazzale Michelangelo is incredible.”
He visited the cathedral, the Duomo, in sad circumstances when a funeral mass was held for the club’s late president, Rocco Commisso, on January 26, 2026.
“Unfortunately, due to the president’s passing, we had the chance to go to the Duomo and be inside for the ceremony. His son (Giuseppe) gave his speech inside the Duomo. I’d seen all the history and the artwork, but to see it inside was unbelievable.”
Jack Harrison and David de Gea embrace after Fiorentina’s Serie A game vs Inter in March (Image credit: Getty Images)
He’s determined to show respect by speaking then language. “My Italian is improving day by day. They (Fiorentina) have been very helpful with the translation, but I’m trying my best to immerse myself in the culture.
“I always like to show a bit of respect when you go somewhere and learn the language, even if it’s just small phrases, like, ‘good morning, how are you?’”
He’s lived in some great cities: New York, Florence and Liverpool for two seasons on loan at Everton. “And don’t forget Leeds!” Harrison certainly isn’t. “I miss the atmosphere of Elland Road. It’s special. I speak to David de Gea (Fiorentina’s keeper), and he always says that going to Elland Road was incredible.
“A lot of people admire the environment there. They’re very passionate fans. When you have that energy, and everything’s going well around the stadium, it really does give you a boost.”
Harrison starts smiling when talk turns to his old Leeds manager, Marcelo Bielsa, being back in England as head coach of Uruguay at Wembley last Friday. “I was smiling because I just saw a video on Instagram of Marcelo looking really well.”
I miss the atmosphere of Elland Road. It’s special. I speak to David de Gea (Fiorentina’s keeper), and he always says that going to Elland Road was incredible.
A beaming Bielsa was being presented with the Cracovia shirt of Mateusz Klich, one of his former Leeds players. “I saw his reaction to that! My time with Marcelo was some of the best in my career in terms of performance.”
What to read next
Harrison joined Leeds as a 21-year-old in 2018, initially on loan from Manchester City, New York City FC’s bigger sibling. “I was young when I first went there. It was a big shock to the system. Marcelo was so demanding but sees so much detail within the game of football. I was playing my best football under him. It was very tough with all the Murder-ball. I’m sure you’ve heard about it.”
Murder-ball needs explaining. “It’s a game basically,” Harrison continues. “But everything is 100% per cent, and there are no fouls. Maybe that’s why they call it Murder-ball!
“A lot of the young kids used to run around some of the older kids and the older guys would get pretty sick of it. So they just end up kicking them. There were some bad tackles in there, but at the same time, if you were attacking, it had to be 100%. If you were defending, it had to be 100%.
“On top of that, you’ve got all the coaches stood in the middle shouting at you if you’re not going 100%. Still, to this day, it’s the hardest training I’ve ever had to do.”
Harrison admits his time with Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds was “some of the best in my career in terms of performance” (Image credit: Getty Images)
Harrison played one of his best games for Bielsa against Liverpool at Anfield in 2020, scoring a superb solo goal. Unfortunately for Leeds, Mo Salah struck a hat-trick as Liverpool won a classic 4-3. “You see his impact in his stats and his records,” Harrison says of Salah.
“But also the way he is as a player. He has a lot of humility. He works really hard and dedicates his life to being a good professional. I admire him a lot. If I had a son, I’d want him to look up to someone like him, just the way he applies himself, the influence that he’s had. It’s been an incredible career.”
Harrison’s thoughts turn back to his own career. For all his love for Leeds, Harrison needed to move. Daniel Farke’s shift to a five-man defence limited the need for a winger even further.
Brenden Aaronson and Noah Okafor, Wilfried Gnonto and new arrival Facundo Buonanotte blocked the pathway for Harrison. A loan made sense for all parties. “It was a difficult start to the season,” Harrison reflects. “It was something that I hadn’t faced before in my career for an extended period of time, just not playing.
“It’s very positive coming here. I’m getting more minutes and playing in the Conference League has been an incredible experience, travelling and playing, a small taste of what it would be like in the Champions League.”
Fiorentina travel to Palace for the first leg on April 9. “I’m definitely looking forward to being back in England and playing in a good stadium like Selhurst Park,” Harrison says. Harrison was on the Elland Road bench watching Leeds take Palace apart 4-1 in December. “If we do things the right way, we can definitely expose Palace the same way that Leeds did. We have a lot of quality.”
Harrison is contributing. “For me, being happy definitely helps a lot. Players can be different. They can thrive in a situation of pressure if they need to provide for family. I’m very ambitious as a player. I want to continue impacting the game and the team the way I know I can. I’ve not quite hit that yet. I’m still pushing to reach that goal and strive for that level of performance before the end of the season.
The training ground (the Rocco B Commisso Viola Park) has absolutely everything you can think of. It’s probably like Man City or Tottenham and all these new ones. It’s a real joy to be there. It gives me energy.
“There’s a lot of positives about being here. The training ground (the Rocco B Commisso Viola Park) has absolutely everything you can think of. It’s probably like Man City or Tottenham and all these new ones. It’s a real joy to be there. It gives me energy. They have the ‘ritiro’ (retreat) the day before games. The Italian style is to spend a lot of time there and then stay over. They have hotel rooms.
“Sometimes in England, a lot of players complain about going to hotels, being away from the families, but for me, it’s a real pleasure to be there, with a spa downstairs. With the weather, you can sit outside and have a coffee. The coffee’s great here! The pitches are immaculate. It’s a dream place for me to train here. In Italy, we definitely do a lot more work on the tactical side of things.”
He’s been closely following Italy’s progress in the World Cup play-offs, partly because his team-mate Moise Kean is involved. The four-time world champions got past Northern Ireland before facing Bosnia & Herzegovina in the final.
“It’s definitely surprising,” Harrison says. “Everybody’s always got really high expectations for the Italian national team. Even just being around Moises Kean and seeing how he’s treated, almost seen as an icon, not just by Fiorentina fans and everyone in the club, but also people from different clubs, how they view him. They (Italian internationals) have a lot of pressure on them.”
The pair have linked up promisingly for Fiorentina. Harrison created a goal for Kean against Torino in February, sliding the ball into the striker’s path. They didn’t cross paths at Everton, where both had loan spells, Harrison in 23/24 and 24/25. Harrison enjoyed his time there, building a connection with coach Leighton Baines. “I got pretty close to Leighton. We used to have some nice conversations about football and tactics. As players, we’re probably quite similar in a lot of ways and how we apply ourselves to the game.
“I really enjoyed my time at Everton. Looking back, I definitely hoped I could have had more of an impact on the pitch with more goals (five) or assists (four).” He enjoyed playing for David Moyes. “Definitely. When he came in, a lot of things changed, the dynamic, and we finished the season really strong.”
So what of the future? Harrison’s Leeds contract runs until 2028. “Coming out here has opened my mind to a lot more possibilities. Just being open and adaptable to go anywhere and to find that happiness. That’s a key thing for me. If I want to be playing at my best – which contributes a lot towards happiness as well – I have to be somewhere where it’s the best thing for my happiness as well. Finding that place would be incredible. Wherever that is, I’m not quite sure, but I’m open to possibilities.”
He’s only 29. “A lot of players can get caught up in getting around 30, ‘I’m getting a bit old’. I look at other players, like (Luka) Modric. 40. Incredible. If I can continue looking after myself, who knows what could happen in the next 10 years? That’s the mindset I have. I’ll give it everything I’ve got.”