Fan re-appears 11 years after getting lost at the San Siro

Rolf Bantle, now 71, travelled to Milan to watch his side FC Basel take on Inter Milan in 2004. The Swiss national got lost after going to the toilet, missed the bus back home, and ended up living rough for 10 years.

Rolf Bantle Source: Twitter

According to a Swiss media report, Bantle returned to Switzerland earlier this year after he slipped on the sidewalk and broke his femur, prompting the Swiss consulate to arrange for his transport back to Basel.

Prior to that he’d remained in Milan for 10 years and told Swiss newspaper Schweiz am Sonntag he didn't return to Switzerland because he "enjoyed the freedom" of living rough.

He was reported missing at the time but no trace of him was ever found until a decade after his bizarre disappearance.

"I was suddenly in a different sector," Mr Bantle said. "I had about €20 in my pocket and no phone so I wandered into Milan.

"People gave me food and cigarettes, and one student offered me a sleeping bag.

"There was for me no longer any reason to go home. I enjoyed the freedom of Milan."

Mr Bantle now resides in a retirement home in Basel.

He added: "I like it here. Ten years is enough and here I feel very good now."