Roberto De Zerbi, the 44-year-old ex-Sassuolo and Brighton manager, has recently been linked with Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester United. Despite these rumors swirling around his future in the Premier League, De Zerbi has made his feelings clear about his commitment to Brighton & Hove Albion.
De Zerbi has expressed a deep affection for Brighton & Hove Albion. He also stated that he is not prepared to return to Serie A for a top Italian job at this time. This comes amidst speculations of him replacing Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge if Chelsea decides on a managerial change due to another underwhelming season under Pochettino's leadership.
In addition to being linked with Chelsea, there have been talks about De Zerbi potentially stepping into Jurgen Klopp's shoes. The German coach is set to leave Liverpool at the end of the current season. However, it remains unclear whether these are mere speculations or if there are concrete plans in place.
De Zerbi hasn’t ruled out returning to Italy in future
De Zerbi last coached a match on Italian soil back in October 2021 when Shakhtar Donetsk faced Inter Milan in an exciting Champions League match. When asked about returning as a coach in Italy during an interview previewing Brighton's Europa League last 16 tie against Roma, he admitted: “It’s not true that I don’t think about it."
Brighton manager, Roberto De Zerbi, said:
"Usually I do what makes me happy and right now that’s to be where I am. I am lucky to compete with this team at this level. It makes me happy when I win but even when we lose it is something special.
“One day I will come back to Italy. I don’t know when that day will come. But when I made the choice two or three years ago to go to Shakhtar, I did it because I wanted to find a path outside Italy. Without going into too many details, there were some things in Italy I didn’t like. I decided to do something else.”
Brighton have become one of most dangerous teams under him
Despite all the speculation surrounding his future career moves, one cannot overlook De Zerbi’s impressive achievements with Brighton so far. Under his guidance: The team secured sixth place in Premier League table last season, they qualified for Europe for the first time ever, and they played before a sold-out crowd at Stadio Olimpico.
These accomplishments have not only elevated Brighton's status in the football world but also solidified De Zerbi's reputation as a top-tier coach.
Roberto De Zerbi added:
“I am very proud to be back here with my team, I usually fall in love with my teams and my players. It happened in Foggia, Benevento, Sassuolo, even Shakhtar. But this is a team I really love, a team who can lose 3-0, and they always bounce back with pride and hunger.
“I have been coaching for 10 years and this is the team where the players are most similar to me in terms of pride, hunger, dignity,and motivation. The young and senior players have a similar footballing outlook to me. I trust them. We are here not only to reach the last eight but also because we are writing history.”
While the future remains uncertain for Roberto De Zerbi, his dedication to Brighton & Hove Albion is clear. Regardless of the speculations linking him with Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester United, he continues to focus on leading Brighton into new heights. As sports fans and sports betting enthusiasts watch closely, it will be interesting to see how this story unfolds in the coming months.
