In an interview with L’Équipe, Roberto De Zerbi addressed why he decided to leave Brighton and Hove Albion last season.
There had been hints throughout the campaign the manager was growing frustrated with Brighton’s data-driven model – buy low sell high – that has seen the club transition from a relegation candidate to a challenger for European football. The financial limitations of the club have been turned into a key asset for their success.
However, for De Zerbi it had become increasingly apparent that it was not the way he wanted to continue working, as he suggested in the statement announcing his departure from the club: “We have agreed to end my time at Brighton so that the club and I can continue to work in the way that suits each of us best, following our own ideas and visions.”
The manager was willing to explore this point a bit more in his wide-ranging interview with the French paper. “I had different ideas to the owner. I like football, I like working but I also like freedom,” De Zerbi said. “It didn’t suit me anymore, I didn’t want to accept unfair things.” He continued, “Afterwards, I chose to come to Marseille. I had the possibility of staying in England, but I made this choice after careful consideration. And I think it’s the ideal atmosphere for me.”
When asked if he had been given more freedom in Marseille, De Zerbi replied, “Being free does not mean being in charge. It means that I’m stimulated, that I feel a strong motivation, and that my position gives me adrenaline. I want to have goosebumps and to get up thinking about making the Vélodrome explode, about Mason Greenwood scoring 15 and Elye Wahi 20.”