Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp have made no secret of their admiration for Brighton & Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi, despite Manchester United’s interest in his services.
The Manchester Evening News understands that United is interested in the Brighton manager as Erik ten Hag’s future at Old Trafford remains uncertain. United suffered their 10th Premier League defeat of the season on Saturday, losing 2-1 to Fulham, leaving them eight points behind the top four.
Ineos is said to have looked into potential replacements for the Dutchman, who will watch his team face Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday night, and De Zerbi is a possibility. Since taking over Brighton, the 44-year-old Italian has done an excellent job.
He led them to the FA Cup semi-finals last season, where they were defeated on penalties by United, as well as a sixth-place finish in the Premier League, which earned them Europa League qualification this season. They won their group, winning four of six matches, and will face Roma in the last 16 next month.
All of this has been accomplished while playing an exciting style of football that has received rave reviews and accolades. Many feared Brighton would regress after Potter was signed by Chelsea, but De Zerbi has led them to new heights, attracting plenty of neutral support along the way.
As a result of the success De Zerbi has had during his
So far at the Amex Stadium, he has been linked with succeeding Klopp at Liverpool this summer and replacing Guardiola if he decides to end his Premier League career with Manchester City. The fact that he is being linked to such prestigious positions, where he will have to fill huge shoes, speaks volumes about his managerial abilities.
And both Klopp and Guardiola have praised the Italian since his arrival in the Premier League, waxing lyrical about him and the impact he has had in English football.
Guardiola said in May last year, ahead of a match against Brighton, “Congratulations on this incredible achievement of being in the Europa League.” Roberto is one of the most influential managers over the last 20 years.
