Roberto De Zerbi (; born 6 June 1979) is an Italian professional

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manager and former player who is the head coach of club Brighton & Hove Albion.

Playing career

De Zerbi started his professional career at AC Milan. He spent four seasons on loan to lower divisions clubs (Serie B to Serie C2). He spent 1999–2000 Serie C1 season in Como along with

Alberto Comazzi Alberto Comazzi (born 16 April 1979) is an Italian footballer who is currently suspended by Italian Football Federation. He last played for Swindon Town in the Football League Two as a defender. Career Italy He developed in the youth team o ...

and

Luca Saudati Luca Saudati (born 18 January 1978 in Milan) is an Italian footballer who played as a winger or as a second striker. Football career Saudati started his career at the A.C. Milan youth system. After relatively unsuccessful loan stints at variou ...

of Milan. Half of the registration rights also sold to Salernitana in 2000–01 and 2001–02 season. In June 2002 Milan bought back De Zerbi from Salernitana and sold De Zerbi to U.S. Foggia. De Zerbi signed for Serie A side Napoli from

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for €2.5 million in 2006. On 8 February 2010, Napoli announced his loan transfer to Romanian Liga I club CFR Cluj, with the deal being made permanent on 31 August 2010 on a three-year contract.

Managerial career

Palermo

On 6 September 2016, De Zerbi was named head coach of Serie A club

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

following Davide Ballardini's departure by mutual consent due to disagreements with the board. His stint at the helm of the Sicilians however turned out to be negative, with seven consecutive defeats and no points at home in three months. After a penalty shootout elimination in a home match against Serie B club Spezia, De Zerbi was sacked on 30 November 2016 and replaced with former team captain

Eugenio Corini Eugenio Corini (born 30 July 1970) is an Italian professional football coach and former player, currently in charge of Serie B club Palermo. A talented, dynamic, and hard-working playmaker, known for his precise long passing, flair, and his a ...

Benevento

On 23 October 2017, De Zerbi was appointed manager of

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newcomers

Benevento Benevento (, , ; la, Beneventum) is a city and ''comune'' of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino (or Beneventano) and the ...

. Despite the side being relegated back to Serie B at the end of the season, De Zerbi was praised for his possession-based, attacking football and transfer business.

Sassuolo

On 13 June 2018, De Zerbi was appointed manager of Sassuolo. Under his tenure, Sassuolo was praised for its footballing style coupled with overachieving results, which led the small Emilian club to two consecutive eighth place spots in the Italian top flight, missing on UEFA Conference League qualification to

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just due to goal difference at the end of the

2020–21 Serie A The 2020–21 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 119th season of top-tier Italian football, the 89th in a round-robin tournament, and the 11th since its organization under an own league committee, the Lega Serie ...

season. In May 2021 De Zerbi announced he would leave Sassuolo by the end of the season.

Shakhtar Donetsk

On 25 May 2021, De Zerbi was announced as the new head coach of Ukrainian Premier League club Shakhtar Donetsk. On 22 September he won the

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Ukrainian Super Cup against Dynamo Kyiv at the Olympic Stadium in Kyiv, becoming the first Italian manager to win the title. He left the club in July 2022 as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He managed to leave the club at the top of the UPL during the unfinished season.

Brighton & Hove Albion

De Zerbi was confirmed as the new head coach of Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion on 18 September 2022, signing a four-year contract. He managed his first game in England on 1 October, in a 3–3 away draw at Liverpool with Leandro Trossard becoming the first Brighton player to score a Premier League hat-trick. De Zerbi lost his first game at Brighton's home stadium of Falmer Stadium on 9 October, calling his players "fantastic" despite the 1–0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. He claimed his first win on 29 October, against the manager he replaced in Graham Potter, thrashing his Chelsea team 4–1.

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

CFR Cluj * Liga I: 2009–10, 2011–12 * Romanian Cup: 2009–10

Manager

Foggia *

Coppa Italia Lega Pro Coppa Italia Serie C ( it, Serie C Italian Cup), formerly named Coppa Italia Lega Pro, is a straight knock-out based competition involving teams from Serie C in Italian football first held in 1972. Format There are a total of six rounds in the c ...

: 2015–16 Shakhtar Donetsk * Ukrainian Super Cup:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:De Zerbi, Roberto 1979 births Living people Footballers from Brescia Italian footballers Italian football managers Calcio Foggia 1920 managers Palermo F.C. managers Benevento Calcio managers U.S. Sassuolo Calcio managers FC Shakhtar Donetsk managers Association football midfielders Association football forwards Italian expatriate footballers Catania S.S.D. players A.C. Milan players Calcio Padova players A.C. Monza players S.S.C. Napoli players U.S. Avellino 1912 players Como 1907 players Calcio Lecco 1912 players Calcio Foggia 1920 players S.S. Arezzo players CFR Cluj players Liga I players Expatriate footballers in Romania Serie A players Serie B players Serie C players Serie D players Serie A managers Ukrainian Premier League managers Italian expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Romania Expatriate football managers in Ukraine Expatriate football managers in England Italian expatriate sportspeople in Romania Italian expatriate sportspeople in Ukraine Italian expatriate sportspeople in England