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

[jcdenton08]

Staying f***ing focused.

He says this constantly - even to the subs. He wants 100% all the time. My mate was at the game and noticed him going ballistic at a couple of our players for not tracking back at 3-1. Really is a manager after my own heart.

 

[Madafwo]

When was that? Most I can see is 5 consecutive home games without scoring under Potter.

We did just go 3 games without scoring, preceding these last 3.

Fair bit of Ministry of Truth going on at present.

Was the run of "goalless" games meaning from open play?

 

[Swansman]

While there was a definite element of luck in De Zerbi being available you have to admire the club's preparedness. Barber had spoken before about having succession planning for everyone at the club, and it's easy to imagine many clubs starting the process from scratch if their manager was plucked a few games into the season.
There was a bit of a delay finalising RDZ but otherwise it seems to have all been smooth.
Barber: ok tone Graham's definitely gone.
Tone: they paid. All good. Who's next?
Barber: got meetings set with De Zerbi's agent and himself. Bruno can be interim and Crofts can assist meanwhile.
Tone: Copacetic. Speak tomorrow.


Barber: Oh Tony slight bother. Graham's taking the entire backroom staff, We were hoping Bruno and Roberts might stay
Tone [[raise eyebrow]]
Barber: So Crofts is interim, lallana assists RDZs goalie coach is good and he probably wants him anyway.
Tone: Lovely. I'll be in for contract negotiations meanwhile archive the Grahams Gone file and start one called.... DeZerbis Deserted

David Weir: guys... guys? I'm... I'm the technical director right?

 

[Farehamseagull]

Brighton so far under RDZ played against two (Nottingham, Spurs) or arguably three (Brentford) teams playing in a way that has been difficult to break down in the last few years.

Those games did not end well.

I'd hold my horses a bit when it comes to Brighton suddenly turning into a free-scoring team. We saw against United and against Leicester and against Wolves and Villa that moving the ball forward quicker is easier when there's not 10 or 11 players on the opposition half every time its time to start attacking.

As for the talk he talks, it is good and will only get better. When he was rumoured to Brighton I read some old press conferences from Italy and he's got a mouth of gold and can't express everything he wants in English yet.

I think things are looking extraordinarly promising, but I'm not getting myself an RDZ tattoo on my arse just quite yet. Eventually every team that isn't City has a poor run of results and opponents are going to develop a better understanding of what RDZ wants to do. Those challenges are the real ones, and it remains to be seen how it is dealt with. But I'm optimistic and think it will go well.

Very good post.

I was a huge Potter fan and have been really pleasantly surprised by how things have gone under RDZ so far but it is still early days, as it was after his first 3 games when some on here were already being very critical of him!

We are playing some lovely stuff though and he in incredibly likeable and infectious. This Sunday is a big test though - Villa have some good players, are coming into the game on a high and now have an excellent manager who organises his sides superbly defensively. It is the sort of game we have tended to struggle in at home in recent seasons. If we can only get a draw and carry on our undefeated run into the break, to be honest I will still be pleased.

 

[Dibdab]

.we shouldn't forget that this is Potter's team, Potter's squad

I disagree with this statement. This is Tony Blooms squad. Potter wasn't finding and recruiting Mitoma, Lamptey, Estupinan, Caceido, Mwepu, Cucurrella, etc. It was Tony Blooms recruitment team and data systems. Potter was being given absolute young Gems to work with and I see absolutely no reason why that doesn't continue under any manager happy to blood young talent, which is exactly why De Zerbi would have got the job.

 

[dazzer6666]

Ill be honest and say hes definitely growing on me! Originally thought he was the "cheap option". The only manager that was allegedly on our radar that didnt need to be bought out of a contract. But seems to be the right manager at the right time, taking the team another step forward. Pretty much like the other GP in that respect. Mitomas goal, yesterday, was beautiful but not a fluke as wed threatened to score in a similar way against City and before. Also, massive respect for RDZ for speaking in English at every opportunity.

He’d have been out of our league if it wasn’t for Putin.

 

[Eric the meek]

There were many comments on the BBC Have your say, that were very complimentary about Brighton. Some were from Arsenal, and some were from neutrals. A few were of the 'Brighton are a very, very good side' variety.

Our improvement has coincided with Mitoma winning a place in the starting 11. I don't know if he's a main factor, but he makes a difference, as defenders soon find they have to double up on him, creating space for others to make runs into the box.

Then there was the return of Lamptey last night, but at left-back. I certainly didn't see that one coming. I don't think anyone did.
Imagine being a right back, up against Mitoma. When Mitoma takes a breather, you've then got Lamptey coming at you. Your only option is to take one for the team and bring them down, assuming you can catch them.

 

[Triggaaar]

By the time the match finished, Arsenal had played Martenelli, Jesus, Xhaka etc

Sure, but let's not pretend yesterday was the same as 3 goals against their first team. We didn't play our first team either, so I'm not taking anything away from the players who got us a fantastic win, but in terms of looking at what our new manager brings, I think it's a bit early to determine that we've suddenly upped the number of goals we can score.

 

[Triggaaar]

He’d have been out of our league if it wasn’t for Putin.

We wouldn't have been looking for a manager if it wasn't for Pootin

 

[dazzer6666]

We wouldn't have been looking for a manager if it wasn't for Pootin

Good point……now I don’t know whether to be pleased or angry

 

[Triggaaar]

Good point……now I don’t know whether to be pleased or angry

Well I guess we can all say it's going better than we'd feared so far. Time will tell whether he's an upgrade or not, but for now we can enjoy the ride.

Hopefully fans can be patient when results don't go our way, because you can be sure there'll be times when they don't. I think Potter was our best ever manager, but even with him we had a run of something like 8 games (can't remember) last year without a win (or was it just home games?)

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Sure, but let's not pretend yesterday was the same as 3 goals against their first team. We didn't play our first team either, so I'm not taking anything away from the players who got us a fantastic win, but in terms of looking at what our new manager brings, I think it's a bit early to determine that we've suddenly upped the number of goals we can score.

3 against Liverpool and four against Chelsea. Yes, I am aware that two of the latter were own goals, but that is from forced mistakes by our improved attacking play.

 

[Justice]

Ill be honest and say hes definitely growing on me! Originally thought he was the "cheap option". The only manager that was allegedly on our radar that didnt need to be bought out of a contract. But seems to be the right manager at the right time, taking the team another step forward. Pretty much like the other GP in that respect. Mitomas goal, yesterday, was beautiful but not a fluke as wed threatened to score in a similar way against City and before. Also, massive respect for RDZ for speaking in English at every opportunity.

P

Very good post.

I was a huge Potter fan and have been really pleasantly surprised by how things have gone under RDZ so far but it is still early days, as it was after his first 3 games when some on here were already being very critical of him!

We are playing some lovely stuff though and he in incredibly likeable and infectious. This Sunday is a big test though - Villa have some good players, are coming into the game on a high and now have an excellent manager who organises his sides superbly defensively. It is the sort of game we have tended to struggle in at home in recent seasons. If we can only get a draw and carry on our undefeated run into the break, to be honest I will still be pleased.

You think Villa is a bigger test than Chelsea?

 

[Triggaaar]

3 against Liverpool

And you think that's more down to RDZ (in his first game) than Potter? Had RDZ really already worked his magic by then? And if so, why did we only score 1 goal in our next 4 games?

 

[Eric the meek]

And you think that's more down to RDZ (in his first game) than Potter? Had RDZ really already worked his magic by then? And if so, why did we only score 1 goal in our next 4 games?

It's not outside the bounds of possibility that RDZ had an impact on that 3-3 at Liverpool. He had, from memory, almost two weeks to prepare for the game. He was also a bit of an unknown quantity, so Klopp would probably not have been as prepared as he usually is.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I disagree with this statement. This is Tony Blooms squad. Potter wasn't finding and recruiting Mitoma, Lamptey, Estupinan, Caceido, Mwepu, Cucurrella, etc. It was Tony Blooms recruitment team and data systems. Potter was being given absolute young Gems to work with and I see absolutely no reason why that doesn't continue under any manager happy to blood young talent, which is exactly why De Zerbi would have got the job.

I don't know the ins and outs of how we recruit.

I'd guess that players just don't land unexpectedly on the managers doormat. He must surely have a say in which players come to the club - whether directly or through their recruitment analyst. Potter had, I believe, an analyst who came with him from Swansea and who he took with him to Chelsea.

However players come to end up in the Brighton squad we can still say it's Potters in so far as these were players recruited on his watch, were brought into the team and squad(while those not wanted/suited were moved on) and were very much trained and drilled in his methods and way of playing.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

It's not outside the bounds of possibility that RDZ had an impact on that 3-3 at Liverpool. He had, from memory, almost two weeks to prepare for the game. He was also a bit of an unknown quantity, so Klopp would probably not have been as prepared as he usually is.

Thank you. It's how I think as well.

 

[Swansman]

It's not outside the bounds of possibility that RDZ had an impact on that 3-3 at Liverpool. He had, from memory, almost two weeks to prepare for the game. He was also a bit of an unknown quantity, so Klopp would probably not have been as prepared as he usually is.

Not sure its a massive step up from the 2-2 in the same fixture last season or the 0-1 win for Brighton in the season before.

I think Brighton would have had a fair chance of getting a point or three with GP as well.

 

[Greg Bobkin]

There were many comments on the BBC Have your say, that were very complimentary about Brighton. Some were from Arsenal, and some were from neutrals. A few were of the 'Brighton are a very, very good side' variety.

Our improvement has coincided with Mitoma winning a place in the starting 11. I don't know if he's a main factor, but he makes a difference, as defenders soon find they have to double up on him, creating space for others to make runs into the box.

Then there was the return of Lamptey last night, but at left-back. I certainly didn't see that one coming. I don't think anyone did.
Imagine being a right back, up against Mitoma. When Mitoma takes a breather, you've then got Lamptey coming at you. Your only option is to take one for the team and bring them down, assuming you can catch them.

There's possibly parallels with when Caicedo burst onto the scene at Arsenal away last season. That seemed to be the catalyst to move the performances up a gear – exciting times...

 

[chaileyjem]

As did the 10 (ish) home games without a goal.

It's hard to imagine such a run now.
That said there may well be a few more defeats as and when RDZ hits a rough patch.

We've already had 5 games without a win under RDZ of which three of those 5 were goalless. RDZ has had a brilliant start, and Chelsea (H) and Arsenal (A) have been two of my most thrilling games to watch in the last 5 years. But agreed i can imagine more bad runs under RDZ. Its the Premier League. It will happen.