Brighton appointed Roberto De Zerbi as the club’s new manager on Sunday, with the Italian handed a four-year contract. De Zerbi replaces Graham Potter, who left to take charge of Chelsea last week, with the Seagulls fourth in the Premier League.##NAJAVA_MECA_6657990##Brighton had been wary of the appointment being hijacked by Juventus because the Italian giants are considering sacking Massimiliano Allegri following their terrible start to the new season. Brighton sealed the deal with the 43-year-old former Sassuolo and Shakhtar Donetsk boss on Sunday evening, just in time to deter Juventus from even trying to get their man. The timing of the new coach’s arrival is favourable because he will have an additional week to get to know his new players during the international break.De Zerbi has been one of the candidates to take over at Bologna back in his homeland. Still, he showed his class and refused the position to show his respect for leukaemia-battling Sinisa Mihajlovic, who’s shockingly been sacked by the Serie A club.##EDITORS_CHOICE##The new Seagulls tactician made his name during three years in charge of Sassuolo, where he married an attractive style of football, finishing eighth in Serie A two seasons in a row in 2020 and 2021. He joined Shakhtar in May 2021, but his time with the Ukrainians was cut short by war last season.Brighton’s deputy chairman and chief executive Paul Barber reassured the fans that De Zerbi was the best man for the job – and the most wanted coach on the south coast of England. “We looked at a range of excellent candidates, but Roberto was our number one choice from the start and the only person we spoke to. We feel Roberto is the ideal cultural and technical fit for Brighton and Hove Albion and the right person to continue the club’s progress and work with this outstanding group of players.”Official: Roberto De Zerbi is the new Brighton manager. – Helped Sassuolo to two 8th place Serie A seasons- Missed out on European Football on goal difference – Won Ukrainian League with Shakhtar – Left Shakhtar due to current war Welcome to the Premier League. 🇮🇹✍️ pic.twitter.com/xC3YMjnbAz— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) September 18, 2022 De Zerbi and his staff will take charge for the first time when Brighton visit Liverpool on 1 October – provided they receive all the required paperwork from the UK government.As a mark of respect to Queen Elizabeth II, who will be buried today, the club has delayed Roberto’s formal introduction to the media until Tuesday afternoon.
