Julio Llorente Gento (born 14 June 1966) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played mainly as a right-back.
Born in Valladolid, Castile and León, Llorente finished his development with La Liga giants Real Madrid, making his debut in the competition in the 1987–88 season with fellow top-division club RCD Mallorca, on loan.[1] He returned to the Spanish capital upon his team's relegation, going on to play 33 competitive games during his two-year tenure and win five major titles, including two consecutive national championships. He appeared in six European Cup matches with the Merengues, scoring in a 6–0 home win against CA Spora Luxembourg in the 1989–90 edition.[2]
Llorente signed with CD Tenerife in summer 1990, helping to the Canary Islands side's domestic and European consolidation.[3][4] From 1994 to 1996 he scored a total of nine goals in 75 league matches, adding five appearances in the 1996–97 UEFA Cup to help them reach the semi-finals.[5]
Tenerife were relegated to Segunda División in 1999,[6] and the 33-year-old Llorente joined another club in that level, UD Salamanca, retiring after one season with top-flight totals of 280 games and 20 goals.[1]
Llorente hailed from a sporting family. Aside from his uncle Francisco Gento, his three older brothers were also professionals: José Luis (1959) and Antonio "Toñín" (1963) played top-level basketball for well more than one decade (including at Real Madrid), while Francisco spent seven seasons with Real Madrid, coinciding with Julio from 1988 to 1990.[7][8]
Real Madrid