The Italian has been out of a job since leaving Shakhtar Donetsk in July following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He previously spent three years in charge of Serie A side Sassuolo before leaving for Shakhtar. De Gerby won rave reviews for his style of football at Sassuolo, leading them two places to eighth in Serie A and won last year’s Ukrainian Super Cup with Shakhtar. De Zebri met chairman Tony Bloom, chief executive Paul Barber and David Weir in London earlier this week and flew to Brighton on Friday before attending a behind-closed-doors friendly at the Amex on Saturday. Brighton have also agreed terms with De Zemry’s coaching staff and hope to have the group in place for their Premier League game against Liverpool each week on Saturday. Image: Roberto De Zerbi has been out of work since leaving Shakhtar Donetsk in July Brighton are currently fourth in the Premier League and have been searching for a new manager since Graham Potter left for Chelsea earlier this month. As a mark of respect to the Queen, De Zerbi will not be formally introduced to the media until Tuesday afternoon. Chairman Tony Bloom said: “I am absolutely delighted that Roberto has agreed to become our new manager. Roberto’s teams play exciting and courageous football and I am sure that his style and tactical approach will be an excellent fit for the our existing team.” Technical director David Weir said: “Roberto has shown his undoubted ability with his work in Italy and Ukraine and what he has achieved at Sassuolo certainly stands out. Image: Former Brighton manager Graham Potter is now in charge at Chelsea “In his short spell with Shakhtar he enjoyed further success, leading the club to cup success and climbing to the top of the Ukrainian league before the war brought his time there to an abrupt halt. “We are delighted to welcome Roberto and look forward to introducing him to our team as well as providing him with all the support he needs to introduce his coaching philosophy and help the players continue their brilliant start to the season.” Deputy chairman and chief executive Paul Barber added: “We vetted a number of excellent candidates but Roberto was our number one choice from the outset and the only person we spoke to. “It is no secret that our chairman is constantly monitoring potential managers, both here in our domestic leagues, across Europe and around the world as part of our succession planning work. “We feel Roberto is the ideal cultural and technical fit for Brighton & Hove Albion and the right person to continue the club’s progress and work with this outstanding group of players.”
De Gerby’s coaching career so far
2013 to 2014: He started his coaching career with the Italian amateur team Darfo Boario. 2014 to 2016: He joined Serie C side Foggia, winning the Coppa Italia Serie C and narrowly missing out on promotion. 2016: He spent two and a half months at Serie A side Palermo but was sacked after a poor start to the season. 2017 to 2018: He joined Benevento who were recently promoted to Serie A. De Gerby won plaudits despite his side’s relegation to Serie B. 2018 to 2021: He was appointed manager of Sassuolo, leading the club to two consecutive eighth-place finishes. Lost the Europa Conference League to Roma on goal difference in 2021. 2021 to 2022: He got his first job outside Italy at Shakhtar Donetsk, winning the Ukrainian Super Cup in September 2021. He left the role due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
What’s next for De Gerby?
The Italian now has two weeks to settle in at Brighton and organize his backroom staff with the Premier League players over an international break. He will also be able to meet and work with players who do not feature for their countries. He then begins a busy and testing month in October, kicking off his reign with a trip to Liverpool on Saturday 1 October, before hosting Tottenham Hotspur at the Amex in their first home game a week later on Saturday 8 October, live on Sky Sports . De Gerby and his team return to Sky Sports for Friday Night Football on October 14 with a trip to Brentford, welcoming Nottingham Forest to the south coast four days later. On Saturday 22 October Brighton take on Premier League champions Manchester City at the Eithad before an Amex clash against former manager Graham Potter and Chelsea on Saturday 29 October.
