[Albion] Roberto De Zerbi - JOINS AS NEW HEAD COACH (4 year contract)

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PILTDOWN MAN

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Sep 15, 2004
19,595
Hurst Green
He said multiple times during the last weeks before the transfer window and the first couple of weeks in it that he wanted signings. Talk died off at the end, perhaps Paul Barber or someone told him to zip it as the manager screaming for signings is a rather big disadvantage in any negotiation you want to do with other clubs.

His words when departing Foggia like one week before their league start:

"With death in my heart this morning I was exonerated. For some time my relations with Ds Di Bari had been strained. In June, to convince me to stay, he made me a series of promises that were never kept. The figure of Colucci, strongly wanted by me, brought no improvement. I am aware that I have an edgy character, I know I do not have elegant manners at times, but I live for my work. For the past two years I have put Foggia before everything and everyone, family and career included. My fault is being demanding with myself with the players and with everyone who works with me, from the warehouse workers to the gardener. Even with sports directors I have reasoned in this way.
If I make a commitment I take responsibility and put my face to it.
This year was a year for me where nothing could go wrong. The non-renewal of Gigliotti, the failure to replace Iemmello and Di Chiara who have been out for some time, some negotiations broken off for futile reasons, or the lack of attention to the Amendola pitch, which has been abandoned since 11 June and will not be ready until November, are some of the reasons for my impatience. On the market, I asked the club to put together an important team. I opposed financial outlays that were out of all logic, but I always remembered that Foggia wanted to win this year and having declared that we were aiming for first place meant that there were burdens to be maintained towards the people.
Despite feeling all this as a serious problem I would never have allowed myself to ask 'It was either me or Di Bari' because I remember well that I was the one who gave me the opportunity to start coaching and neither did I ever set an out-out to force purchases of players.
I denounced this thought of mine in order to make a clean break with what was being done. For the good of all.
I am writing these lines because I do not want mud to be thrown at my person. I have renounced higher categories because I feel this team is a matter of skin and I am not regretful. I feel I am at peace with my conscience. I am a passionate instinctual so easily prone to making mistakes in manner and timing. But I am true, loyal, sincere and consistent. With everyone. From the strongest to the weakest.
I thank the Sannella brothers for what they have given me in these months. I am sorry that I have not been able to make myself well known.
Maybe I should have cultivated my relationship with them more and maybe they would have appreciated my professionalism and my human side.
I am convinced that I did everything in their interest sometimes forgetting my own interests.
I thank my players whom I will always carry in my heart. I am sorry to leave something I built. Day after day.
I thank the people of the Zaccheria. My stadium."


...also indicates that he wants money to be spent, very good players to be brought in, himself to have a big say in who comes and leaves.

Ultimately, I don't think it will be a problem. But it can't be ruled out. The club won't abandon its model just because a manager wants it to.
We have stepped up the contract renewals like never before. This undoubtedly was to show RDZ we are serious about our squad and their retention. Our stance over Caicedo was a massive show, even more so than buying anyone in the last window, apart from signing the next wonder kids that is!
 




Swansman

Pro-peace
May 13, 2019
22,320
Sweden
We have stepped up the contract renewals like never before. This undoubtedly was to show RDZ we are serious about our squad and their retention. Our stance over Caicedo was a massive show, even more so than buying anyone in the last window, apart from signing the next wonder kids that is!
Yup. Not too worried. Most likely two-three good players will leave, three-four come in, and everyone will be happy.
 




Johnny RoastBeef

These aren't the players you're looking for.
Jan 11, 2016
3,471
All this stuff is just International week guff to fill newspapers. No quotes, just made up rubbish.

The last direct quote from De Zerbi was this:

When quizzed on links to Tottenham, De Zerbi made it clear he was committed to his contract at the Amex while also citing that reported interest reflects favourably on the work he has conducted thus far.

“We are happy because people are speaking about our quality of play. We are proud," the Brighton boss said.

“But we have to be focused only on the next games. We have a clear focus, a clear target.

“I have a long contract with Brighton and I'm happy to work here. I enjoy working with these players, I'm delighted with their performance.

“I can't ask for more because for me it’s a good moment of my work, of my life.”
 


Sepulveda

Notts County's younger cousins' fan
Mar 19, 2023
419
Northern Italy
He said multiple times during the last weeks before the transfer window and the first couple of weeks in it that he wanted signings. Talk died off at the end, perhaps Paul Barber or someone told him to zip it as the manager screaming for signings is a rather big disadvantage in any negotiation you want to do with other clubs.

His words when departing Foggia like one week before their league start:

"With death in my heart this morning I was exonerated. For some time my relations with Ds Di Bari had been strained. In June, to convince me to stay, he made me a series of promises that were never kept. The figure of Colucci, strongly wanted by me, brought no improvement. I am aware that I have an edgy character, I know I do not have elegant manners at times, but I live for my work. For the past two years I have put Foggia before everything and everyone, family and career included. My fault is being demanding with myself with the players and with everyone who works with me, from the warehouse workers to the gardener. Even with sports directors I have reasoned in this way.
If I make a commitment I take responsibility and put my face to it.
This year was a year for me where nothing could go wrong. The non-renewal of Gigliotti, the failure to replace Iemmello and Di Chiara who have been out for some time, some negotiations broken off for futile reasons, or the lack of attention to the Amendola pitch, which has been abandoned since 11 June and will not be ready until November, are some of the reasons for my impatience. On the market, I asked the club to put together an important team. I opposed financial outlays that were out of all logic, but I always remembered that Foggia wanted to win this year and having declared that we were aiming for first place meant that there were burdens to be maintained towards the people.
Despite feeling all this as a serious problem I would never have allowed myself to ask 'It was either me or Di Bari' because I remember well that I was the one who gave me the opportunity to start coaching and neither did I ever set an out-out to force purchases of players.
I denounced this thought of mine in order to make a clean break with what was being done. For the good of all.
I am writing these lines because I do not want mud to be thrown at my person. I have renounced higher categories because I feel this team is a matter of skin and I am not regretful. I feel I am at peace with my conscience. I am a passionate instinctual so easily prone to making mistakes in manner and timing. But I am true, loyal, sincere and consistent. With everyone. From the strongest to the weakest.
I thank the Sannella brothers for what they have given me in these months. I am sorry that I have not been able to make myself well known.
Maybe I should have cultivated my relationship with them more and maybe they would have appreciated my professionalism and my human side.
I am convinced that I did everything in their interest sometimes forgetting my own interests.
I thank my players whom I will always carry in my heart. I am sorry to leave something I built. Day after day.
I thank the people of the Zaccheria. My stadium."


...also indicates that he wants money to be spent, very good players to be brought in, himself to have a big say in who comes and leaves.

Ultimately, I don't think it will be a problem. But it can't be ruled out. The club won't abandon its model just because a manager wants it to.
Foggia? You mean his first serious coaching job which was in the third division and which he left 7 years ago in 2016 after spending 2 years with the club? I think this situation is a bit different and he might also have changed slightly in 7 years.

Having said that, he didn't have much trouble of this kind in the other clubs he worked at after Foggia. He was either sacked because of losses/relegation in tough clubs (Palermo and Benevento), or left after 3 years because he believed he personally couldn't do anything more in terms of results and he'd done the maximum he could (Sassuolo), or he was interrupted by a war (Shakhtar.)

He is a determined character and he is extremely candid and blunt, but he hasn't made outrageous demands so far in his career.

And of course Brighton shouldn't abandon their successful model and jettison the club for one manager lmao, that would be idiotic.
 






dazzer6666

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Mar 27, 2013
55,530
Burgess Hill
It’s compensation - not a release clause. Compensation means the club have to give permission etc etc - release clause means they don’t. So many lazy assumptions have appeared on it but it’s very simple!
I know….but even Naylor is confusing people with his language
 


Paulie Gualtieri

Bada Bing
NSC Patron
May 8, 2018
10,623
I want to win the lottery, see Brighton win the Champions League and have a night that just involves me, Konnie Huq, a pot of Vaseline and some Viagra but I can’t see all of those happening just because that’s what I want :shrug:
Be realistic, have you seen the price of Vaseline recently?
 








ConfusedGloryHunter

He/him/his/that muppet
NSC Patron
Jul 6, 2011
2,411
But if any club stump up £20M and RDZ wants to go would we really block him ? Doubtful
Unlikely but if we were unhappy with DeZ, the timing or the level of compensation we could be awkward about it. If say the contract included notice periods or similar specific clauses we could put him on gardening leave. As was done with Ashcroft (although I doubt the head coach contracts are too similar to his).
Not that simple unfortunately.

With players it is quite easy. Eg Darwin Nunez could pay up whatever he has left on his contract in Liverpool and join Brighton. No problem. Any player can do that. Liverpool does not own Darwin Nunez (owning people is abolished): they own his registration rights. Darwin could pay up the rest of his income with Liverpool and join Brighton instead, but he wouldn't be able to play unless the club bought the registration rights.

Managers doesn't have registration rights, making it a lot more difficult to protect them from going.

Negotiating for a manager is complicated. If Chelsea would have made GP brake his contract with Brighton without first asking for permission, no one knows what would have happened. It might have ended up in court where the outcome could have been "bloke can go wherever the f*** he wants as long as he/his new employer pays up the remainder of his contract" or it could have become "oh deary me, you can't do that, you have to pay £100m in compensation". Instead, Chelsea likely came asking and Brighton pointed at a release/buyout/compensation (whatever really, the outcome is the same) and Chelsea said "okey dokey".

No one knows what happens if club A wants the manager of club B (with the manager willing to talk) but club B refuses, because in that scenario everyone wants is to happen quick and smoothly. Clubs really dont want a wantaway manager so they get it sorted.

Sure would be interesting if Spurs or someone really, really wanted RDZ, RDZ himself wanted to go and Brighton gave them a blank no. Such a case has never been up in court, and neither has the concept of "release clauses" in general been up in court. Not likely that anyone is eager to be first either: would leave both clubs in a hopeless situation with their desired manager and the manager himself in a limbo in what could possibly take years to sort out legally.
It is different to player registration yes. But do you really think clubs do not have a legal leg to stand on when it comes to want away managers? Do you think Chelsea paid millions for Potter because they felt a bit generous? Or is it possible Potter was some sort of idiot when he signed his contract with Brighton?
 




dwayne

Well-known member
Jul 5, 2003
16,264
London
No smoke without fire. There is obviously some tension in the background which is a good thing.

Just hope de zerbi is not too much of a troublemaker.
 








Hotchilidog

Well-known member
Jan 24, 2009
9,120
Bloom and Barber know what they are doing, they both love Roberto and the working relationship is good. What ever decisions are made going forward will be made in the best interest of the club. We are not in the business of cutting off our nose to spite our face.

Sadly we are going to have to endure this endless paper talk as we continue to gatecrash the party at the top of the table, it does not bother the people backstage. We are lucrative clickbait material now, we'd better get used to it.
 


dwayne

Well-known member
Jul 5, 2003
16,264
London
Which smoke is that? Unsubstantiated shit paper fire?
I dunno. Most of it is probably rubbish. But you don't see similar articles on Thomas Frank or the Fulham manager. I don't see any reason for papers/blogs to be flat out making up stories about little old Brighton, not enough people care.
 


Silverhatch

Well-known member
Feb 23, 2009
4,682
Preston Park
I just see him as incredibly focused and ambitious - genuinely think he’s even causing Tony and Paul to rethink where we should be aiming.
YES. This! I think he's blown in and pointed out how good the squad is and what can be achieved. He's turned Solly March into a beast in six months. He's lit Ferguson's career. We have a midfield as good as if not better than any team in this league. He's clearly got Lallana excited. Get the distinct feeling that he's definitely shaken the board up a bit too. Very sure that little will change in the football operations of the club, but RDZ's approach has certainly made everyone review parameters (outside of the established/routine timeframes) which is an excellent thing for any organisation to do.
 


SeagullinExile

Well-known member
Sep 10, 2010
6,190
London
I dunno. Most of it is probably rubbish. But you don't see similar articles on Thomas Frank or the Fulham manager. I don't see any reason for papers/blogs to be flat out making up stories about little old Brighton, not enough people care.
Funny that. I’ve seen both of them being linked with the Spurs job in the last few days. ???
 






Berty23

Well-known member
Jun 26, 2012
3,643
I dunno. Most of it is probably rubbish. But you don't see similar articles on Thomas Frank or the Fulham manager. I don't see any reason for papers/blogs to be flat out making up stories about little old Brighton, not enough people care.
I suspect it is because of how we play that we get so much attention. This season only City have had more possession in matches than us. Brentford are park the bus and hoof it merchants and Fulham are also pretty dull. The dominance we have in matches based on what we have spent is absolutely extraordinary. Games we have lost/drawn we have still been pretty dominant. Fulham, palace since Xmas. Forest and Brentford early in RDZ days. Throw in some shocking calls from officials and we could very easily be top four. We have not been winning games like those three 1-0 wins when were battered but won under hughton have we?

 


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