Brighton boss De Zerbi excited by Europa League first leg away at Roma
Brighton boss De Zerbi excited by Europa League first leg away at Roma
Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy
Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy
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SportsTranscript
00:00 We'll start with Roberto.
00:17 We'll take questions for Roberto first, then Pascal.
00:20 Roberto will answer in Italian and then we'll translate into English.
00:24 Pascal will answer in English, we'll translate into Italian.
00:28 Good evening, we'll start with questions for De Zerbi, who will answer in Italian.
00:34 Then we'll take questions for Ross, who will answer in English.
00:39 Good evening, Stefano Carina, Messaggero di Roma.
00:47 I have a couple of questions.
00:49 I read one of your interviews.
00:53 You talked about the Italian coaches.
00:58 It's not that they're all good.
01:01 What the coaches lack is a bit of courage.
01:05 In Italy we still have to face setbacks like a sort of sacrilege.
01:09 Do you think De Rossi is a courageous coach?
01:13 A coach who has started a different path than the others?
01:21 And then a question about tomorrow's game.
01:23 Do you think Roma will defend 3 or 4?
01:26 Thank you.
01:27 I always talked about the typical mentality, the tradition.
01:35 If we talk about Daniele, about this season, about the last seasons,
01:42 I think the reality is very different from 10 or 15 years ago.
01:50 This year, Atalanta, Gasperini are always one step ahead in playing with courage.
02:00 But Vincenzo Italiano, Tiago Motta, they've taken many teams in Serie B.
02:08 Catanzaro di Vivarini, they've taken many coaches in a different direction.
02:16 As for Daniele, I think he was born to be a coach.
02:22 Two years ago, one year and a half ago, during the international break,
02:29 I think he wasn't yet a coach at SPAL.
02:33 I don't want to be wrong.
02:35 I told Daniele that he could be a great coach.
02:38 I think he would become a great coach.
02:41 He has all the qualities of a great coach.
02:46 He has the personality, the ability to have a good relationship with the players.
02:52 I know him well, we've talked a lot.
02:55 I'm happy because he's changing a team that was already strong,
03:02 that had already reached two finals in the last two years,
03:06 that had its own style of play.
03:08 He's given a new style of play in a short period of time.
03:12 He's getting great results because it's not all about the money.
03:18 I think he's on the right track to become a great coach.
03:25 From my point of view, he's already a great coach.
03:29 I don't know if he'll play in the top three or four.
03:33 I don't know how I play, I can't know how Daniele plays.
03:38 A couple of questions.
03:42 I read an interview recently where you spoke about Italian coaches.
03:46 Apparently, you said that not all of them are good ones,
03:49 that many times, often, they lack courage.
03:53 Regarding Daniele De Rossi, do you believe that he's courageous,
03:58 that he's brave enough?
04:00 Do you expect him tomorrow to defend with a three- or a four-man back line?
04:06 Actually, I was referring to the typical Italian mindset.
04:13 But if we look back at the recent championships, leagues,
04:21 and especially if we refer to Daniele De Rossi,
04:25 things have changed dramatically compared to the last 10 or 15 years.
04:31 If we look at the current Serie A, Atalanta with Gasperini,
04:39 has always shown courage.
04:41 The same applies to Vincenzo Italiano, to Thiago Motta.
04:46 Or even in the championship, a Serie B team, Catanzaro, under Vivarini.
04:51 And regarding De Rossi, yes, I believe that he was born to be a coach.
04:55 A couple of years ago, I was talking to him during the international break
04:59 for the World Cup.
05:01 I believe that he was not coaching SPAL yet.
05:04 And I said that I was pretty sure that he would become a great coach
05:10 because he has everything that a coach needs, personality, charisma.
05:15 I know him, and I'm very happy for him that he's doing so well
05:19 because he's changing a team that was already good,
05:22 a team that had already achieved two finals.
05:26 And he's getting very good results.
05:29 It's not automatic. You cannot take it never for granted.
05:33 So he's on the right track to become a great coach.
05:36 And indeed, I believe that he already is a great coach.
05:41 And personally, I don't know how he's going to play tomorrow to defend.
05:45 I don't know. I'll be playing myself,
05:48 so you can imagine if I know how they're going to do it.
05:53 Good evening. Roberto Maida, Corriere dello Sport.
05:56 De Rossi has called you a football genius.
06:00 It's an important definition.
06:03 You feel like, I'm not saying you're a genius,
06:06 but you're a visionary, a person who goes back in time
06:10 and understands things before anyone else.
06:14 And the second question, since this is a game between Roma and Brighton,
06:18 not between De Rossi and De Zerbi,
06:20 but between De Rossi and De Zerbi,
06:23 is that you have players who are probably stronger than Brighton.
06:27 If you could share this analysis. Thank you.
06:30 No, I don't feel like a genius or better than the others.
06:39 I'm not afraid of work.
06:43 And I don't lack the courage to do things that others don't do.
06:49 Things that can be right or wrong.
06:52 And I live for football.
06:55 This is the difference that makes me have this career.
07:04 I don't think I was born better than others,
07:08 or smarter than others.
07:10 I'm not saying this to you, I always say this.
07:13 But it's clear that if I have to do something different than I think,
07:18 not so much for fashion or to do something new,
07:23 but if I really believe in something,
07:26 I go without thinking about the consequences,
07:30 without thinking about the negative effects
07:33 or things that can block this new thing that I want to do.
07:40 Second question?
07:46 I respect Daniele De Rossi more than a friend,
07:53 because we are very similar as people.
07:57 It's true that our daughters became friends,
08:01 and that's not a coincidence, because we probably have the same values.
08:05 So I appreciate what Daniele said.
08:10 Roma are strong.
08:12 Roma were strong with Mourinho and strong with Daniele.
08:15 They have experience.
08:17 We don't have experience,
08:20 but we came here to play with humility,
08:25 because we know who we're playing against,
08:27 we know in which stadium we're playing.
08:29 But we also know what we're worth,
08:32 what we've done in a year and a half,
08:35 and this thing of a year and a half gives us so much pride.
08:38 We don't play just to get to the quarter-finals.
08:45 We play because in our club we're writing history
08:49 and we're doing something unthinkable a few years ago.
08:53 And this for our club, for our fans,
08:56 for all of Brighton football,
08:59 is something we feel a lot.
09:07 Daniele De Rossi defined you as a genius.
09:12 Do you perceive yourself as a genius,
09:16 or at least a visionary,
09:18 as someone who's able to anticipate things?
09:21 And then speaking about tomorrow's game,
09:25 Daniele De Rossi said that Roma are probably better players than Brighton.
09:29 Do you agree with him?
09:32 Well, no, not at all.
09:35 I don't see myself as a genius.
09:37 I don't think I'm better than others,
09:39 but I'm not scared to work hard.
09:42 And of course I do not lack courage.
09:46 What probably makes the difference in my career
09:48 is my love and my passion for football.
09:51 And I don't see myself as smarter than others.
09:55 But really, I'm really honest about this.
10:01 But yes, it's true that if I believe in something,
10:04 if I want to try something different because I believe in it,
10:07 I'm not scared of it.
10:09 I do not think even too much about any potential negative consequences.
10:15 Regarding De Rossi,
10:18 well, we are, as you know, good friends with each other.
10:21 First of all, because we respect each other as people.
10:25 It's not a coincidence that our daughters are good friends,
10:28 probably because we share the same values.
10:32 Roma is and was under Mourinho a strong team.
10:37 It's an experienced team, but we are here to play,
10:45 to be competitive, and we'll give it a go.
10:48 We will be humble, but we know what we are worth.
10:51 We know what we have done so far over the past one year and a half.
10:55 And we are here not only to reach the last eight of the competition,
11:00 but because we are writing history.
11:03 And this is something unprecedented for this club
11:06 that means so much to the club and our fans.
11:10 Hi, coach. Maurizio Pizzoferrato, Agenzia Area.
11:21 You mentioned the stadium earlier.
11:24 I can guarantee, but maybe you already know,
11:27 that fans have been throwing the ball into this stadium for a while now.
11:35 The fans are really pushing hard.
11:37 So I wanted to know if you're afraid,
11:40 because your players may not have much experience,
11:43 even though you play in England.
11:45 Can you tell Brighton not to be affected by this?
11:51 How much does it bother you to be here,
11:55 not being able to count on the best team?
12:00 We'll see tomorrow if the stadium will intimidate us.
12:06 We played at Old Trafford, we won.
12:11 We played at Marseille, we drew two-nil,
12:15 we played well, we played at home against Athens.
12:19 It's a very hot stadium, and we won.
12:23 I know the Olympics, I'm Italian, I know the Olympics.
12:28 We'll see tomorrow.
12:30 This is definitely a test for us.
12:33 I think we need to put even more effort into playing in a stadium like this.
12:41 I've been coaching for ten years.
12:45 I've changed five or six teams.
12:49 These players, these players at Brighton,
12:52 are the ones I feel are closest to me.
12:56 Because of their pride, hunger, dignity, motivation, values,
13:05 the way they live football, they live it like I do.
13:09 Old and young.
13:11 I'm confident, and the coach always judges everything.
13:17 Second question?
13:19 Injuries are a topic that can be taken in two ways.
13:28 Either we start crying and say the list of injured players,
13:33 and we list how many important players we have out there.
13:38 Or we take it as an opportunity,
13:41 because we're aiming to get through the season,
13:46 we're aiming to compete, even with all these injured players.
13:50 No one guaranteed us that with Mitoma, Joe Pedro, March, Milner,
13:58 Jackie Indeswood, with a big, strong ass, we'd get through the season.
14:05 No one guarantees us that we'll be eliminated without these players.
14:10 I don't want to hear about injuries, I've said that to the players.
14:14 We're enough to compete in the best way.
14:31 Coach, as you probably know, over the past few years,
14:36 supporters, fans in this stadium score goals.
14:40 They literally score goals.
14:42 They push the team so hard that they barely score goals.
14:47 Do you believe that your team will have any fear?
14:51 Will this be a factor for Brighton?
14:54 How disappointed are you to play this very important game
15:00 with so many injured players missing?
15:03 We will see tomorrow about the stadium.
15:07 We already played at Old Trafford, we won,
15:10 we played away at Marseille, and we drew 2-2.
15:14 We played away against the ICCAP Athens, a very hot stadium,
15:19 and we won as well.
15:21 I know the Olympics very well, I know how hard they push.
15:24 It's going to be a test, that's for sure,
15:26 but in my opinion, this should motivate us,
15:29 this should give us an extra boost.
15:32 I've been coaching for 10 years now, I've changed 5 or 6 teams,
15:37 and this is the team where the players are similar,
15:44 are more similar to me in terms of pride, hunger, dignity, motivation, values.
15:49 Both young and senior players, how they live football,
15:53 they are very similar to me.
15:55 And as for the rest, the pitch will be our judge.
15:59 Injuries, well, we have two ways to approach this.
16:03 We can either complain and cry about it, or we take it as a chance
16:07 and we try to compete also with these missing players.
16:11 And plus, no one can guarantee us that with Mitoma, João Pedro, Milner,
16:16 and so forth, we would have gone through,
16:19 or someone tells us that we cannot go through without them.
16:24 So I already said this also to my players,
16:27 I don't want to listen to any complaint,
16:30 because we are a Bastanza, we are enough to be competitive.
16:40 What are your emotions bringing the Brighton team back to Italy?
16:47 Back to your homeland? Is it pride?
16:49 Or how do you feel?
16:50 And also, can I ask you, which team is your daughter going to be supporting tomorrow night?
16:55 What are his emotions?
17:02 Bringing the Brighton here in Italy, in his homeland,
17:05 a feeling of pride, and then he says,
17:07 "Your daughter will be the one to make the team tomorrow."
17:09 No, my daughter won't make the Roma team.
17:11 Daniele probably explained himself badly.
17:16 My daughter is friends with Daniele Gaya's daughter,
17:19 and when Roma play, they go together to see her,
17:23 and my daughter is there with them.
17:25 Clearly, when she plays against me, my daughter is her father.
17:31 And then, when we have friends in another team,
17:37 I also have to play against Daniele Goya's Roma team,
17:40 and then I have to face him in the next round.
17:43 So, I have no doubt about my daughter.
17:48 The first question is,
17:50 is it a great pride to come back to Italy?
17:54 And to come back to Italy with this team?
17:56 I usually fall in love with all my teams,
18:00 with all my players.
18:02 I did this at Foggia, I did this at Benevento,
18:05 I did this at Sassuolo for three years.
18:09 At Shakhtar I was only there for six months,
18:13 but I was very attached to that team.
18:15 But this is a team that makes me proud when we play,
18:20 because we can lose 3-0,
18:24 or do what the Italian journalists say,
18:30 do some kind of "boat" play.
18:32 But you have to understand what kind of level Brighton is,
18:36 before saying this.
18:38 And then, another thing,
18:40 after every heavy defeat,
18:42 this is a team that is always coming back,
18:46 always coming out of the suffering,
18:52 with the game, with pride, with hunger.
18:56 So, coming back to my country,
18:58 with these players, with this club,
19:02 is a reason for great pride.
19:04 Regarding my daughter,
19:11 my daughter is not a Roma supporter.
19:15 Maybe Daniele De Rossi misunderstood.
19:19 My daughter and his daughter, Gaia,
19:22 they were watching a game together,
19:25 and of course they were supporting Roma.
19:27 But when someone is playing against her father,
19:32 of course she will support me,
19:34 I have no doubt about this.
19:36 Even myself, I was supporting Roma
19:38 when they played the penalties shoot-out
19:41 against Feyenoord.
19:43 So, no doubt at all about who's going to support my daughter.
19:47 And as far as the first question is concerned,
19:50 yes, absolutely, I'm very proud to be back in my country
19:53 with this team.
19:55 I actually fell in love with all my teams and my players.
19:59 It happened in Foggia, in Benevento, in Sassuolo,
20:02 even in Shakhtar, where I only spent six months,
20:05 but I felt very attached to that team and that environment.
20:09 But this is a team that I really love.
20:12 This is a team that can lose 3-0,
20:15 that can be trashed, can be overwhelmed,
20:18 but also you have to take a look at the level of this team,
20:22 and they always bounce back, they always react
20:25 after heavy defeats.
20:27 We pick ourselves up.
20:29 And how do we do it? By fighting, by playing,
20:31 playing with pride and with hunger.
20:34 So, therefore, I'm really proud to be in Italy with this team.
20:39 Hi Roberto, good evening.
20:43 As an observer of your games, of your Brighton,
20:48 it seemed to me that in the last period
20:51 the level has dropped a little bit,
20:53 perhaps for the reasons you mentioned before,
20:55 I imagine also related to absences,
20:57 which, beyond the fact that one can complain about it or not,
20:59 but it is objective, in short, that they have taken something away.
21:02 I don't know if it can be the Europa League for you,
21:06 the right evening, the one tomorrow and the one on the return,
21:09 to give the team a spark,
21:12 which seems to have lost it a bit,
21:14 knowing the level you have reached with these guys.
21:17 We have made the choice to take all competitions to the maximum.
21:23 For us, the game in the round of 16 of the Europa League
21:29 is no more important than Brighton-Nottingham on Sunday
21:34 or other games.
21:36 It is clear that we are not used to
21:40 playing three games a week for so long.
21:46 It is true that we have reached the level of injuries
21:50 of ten players, all at the same time.
21:54 We don't have a number of players
21:58 that is so wide.
22:00 If you think about West Ham,
22:03 last year, when they reached the final of the Conference League,
22:07 they fought to not fall behind in the Premier League.
22:10 Leicester, two years ago, when you eliminated them here at home,
22:14 last year, they fell behind.
22:16 In Germany, Freiburg is tenth in the table.
22:20 Union Berlin, for the first time,
22:22 has played the Champions League,
22:24 and is fighting to not fall behind.
22:26 Sevilla and Villarreal are tenths,
22:29 and 14th or 13th.
22:31 Rennes, which is a strong team,
22:33 Toulouse and Lens,
22:36 are recovering a bit.
22:39 All three have been eliminated from the European competitions.
22:44 This means that,
22:46 if we have had any problems,
22:49 it is normal.
22:53 A club that is not used to playing in European competitions,
22:56 since it does not know what it means to compete
23:00 for so many games in a row,
23:03 something is lost.
23:05 Something is lost for sure.
23:07 Before the European League started,
23:10 we had played five games, four wins and one loss.
23:14 Then it became a bit more difficult to compete,
23:20 as we had been used to last year,
23:24 and the first days of this season.
23:32 Recently, Brighton has gone through a difficult spell,
23:38 probably due to these absences,
23:40 because you may decide not to complain about it,
23:43 but it is a given, it is a fact.
23:45 Could tonight's game in UEFA Europa League
23:49 be the right time for your team
23:53 to find the spark back?
23:56 We chose to compete in all competitions.
24:00 For us, tomorrow's game,
24:02 to try to achieve the last eight of the UEFA Europa League,
24:07 will not be more important than the Brighton-Nottingham
24:11 scheduled for next Sunday.
24:14 We are not used to playing three games per week for so long.
24:19 That's why we reached such a high level of injured players.
24:23 Plus, our squad is not so deep.
24:27 If you look at West Ham last year,
24:31 who won the Conference League,
24:33 they fought not to be relegated.
24:37 Leicester, which Roma beat here two years ago in the semi-final,
24:42 were relegated last year.
24:44 If you look at Bundesliga,
24:46 Freiburg is tenth, Union Berlin played Champions League
24:49 for the first time, and they are both struggling.
24:52 Sevilla and Villarreal in Spain,
24:55 they are 14th on the table,
24:57 and 10th in France,
25:00 run to lose, Lens, they are a good team,
25:02 they are now doing a little better,
25:04 but they all got out,
25:06 were knocked out of the European competitions.
25:09 So, what does this mean?
25:11 That if we are having some problem,
25:13 if we are a little bit struggling,
25:15 that's absolutely normal.
25:16 We are not used, we do not have experience
25:18 to compete at this level for so many things.
25:21 And if you do it, you lose something.
25:23 But still, the level remains high.
25:26 Good evening, Roberto.
25:31 Good evening.
25:32 This is the first time that 90 minutes is half-time.
25:38 Does that make any difference to the way you approach
25:42 a two-legged tie,
25:44 particularly with the first leg away from home?
25:47 Does it make any difference to the way you approach it?
25:49 And if so, what is the difference?
25:52 Yes, it's not the...
25:54 Yes, it's the first time that we play a two-legged tie,
26:01 so the first 90 minutes will be the first half of this two-legged tie,
26:06 particularly away from home.
26:08 Will this change anything,
26:10 in the way you approach the game?
26:12 Yes, it's the first time in Brighton,
26:14 but it's not the first time because in the year against Shakhtar
26:19 we won the Champions League playoffs,
26:22 the preliminaries of the Champions League.
26:24 In four games we eliminated Genk,
26:29 in the semi-final and the final we eliminated Monaco.
26:33 But it's true, the game is 180 minutes long.
26:38 And we have to be good at not losing our identity.
26:48 But we have to know that the game is 180 minutes long.
26:53 So we have to find the balance between us,
27:02 but also think that tomorrow night is not over.
27:07 So there are 90 minutes left,
27:10 and for Brighton this is something new.
27:15 It's true it's the first time for Brighton,
27:22 but it's not the first time for me,
27:24 because when I was at Shakhtar we played the preliminary rounds
27:28 to have access to the UEFA Champions League.
27:32 We beat Genk in four games, in the semi-final and then Monaco.
27:38 So it's true, it's going to be 180 minutes, at least, double match.
27:45 And we have to strike the right balance between being ourselves,
27:49 not losing our identity, but at the same time
27:53 try to remember that it will not be over today,
27:57 because we have 90 more minutes to play.
28:01 Good evening, coach. Francesco Jucca, TV Play, Calciomercato.it.
28:06 I wanted to ask you, is it so complicated to think of finding the Serie A
28:13 in the short term, and if it is so complicated,
28:16 is it for an economic reason, maybe linked to the clause,
28:20 or to the possibilities it would have,
28:22 or is it because you think that the Premier League and Brighton,
28:26 but especially the Premier, could be the right place for you,
28:30 and maybe Italy doesn't think so. Thank you.
28:33 No, it's not true that I don't think so, because it's my country,
28:37 so it's normal that I think so.
28:40 But I usually do what I like.
28:43 What I like is that it makes me happy.
28:47 And now it's staying there.
28:50 I'm lucky to have a team that allows me to play these competitions,
28:58 these games, it gives me satisfaction,
29:01 when we win, always.
29:04 But even when we lose, I find some nice things about the players I train.
29:13 I don't know when, but I'll definitely return to Italy,
29:19 but there's no reason to do so.
29:22 The choice I made three years ago to go to Shakhtar
29:31 was because I wanted to create a path outside of Italy,
29:36 for my idea, for my choice,
29:43 and also because, without going into details,
29:46 there were things I didn't like, so I looked for something else.
29:51 Is it so unlikely to see you one day in the near future
29:57 back coaching in Serie A in Italy?
30:00 And if not, is it due to economic reasons
30:03 or maybe because you believe the Premier League
30:06 is the right place for you, somehow better than Italy?
30:10 Do you think about it, or you don't even consider it?
30:14 I think it's a good question.
30:17 Do you think about it, or you don't even contemplate it?
30:21 No, it's not true that I don't think about it,
30:24 but usually I do what I like, I do what makes me happy,
30:28 and right now is to be where I am.
30:32 And I'm lucky enough to be able to compete with this team
30:35 at this level, to play these games,
30:38 and it makes me happy, of course, when we win,
30:41 but also when we lose, I feel something special.
30:46 One day I will come back to Italy,
30:49 I don't know when this day will come,
30:52 but it's true that when I made the choice
30:55 a couple of years ago to go to Shakhtar,
30:58 I did it because I wanted to find a way outside Italy
31:02 and without going too much into details,
31:06 there were some things in Italy that I didn't like,
31:10 so I decided to try something else.
31:15 Pascal, a question please.
31:18 The manager says you're writing history here,
31:22 how much history can you write,
31:25 and how does it feel to be breaking new frontiers with Brighton?
31:32 I think we're already writing history
31:36 because it will be our first knockout game
31:40 of the club's history in European football.
31:44 We know where we come from,
31:47 it was not an easy way to get here,
31:50 so we will be humble, but we're also full of confidence
31:55 and we're really looking forward to playing that game tomorrow.
31:59 The manager says you're writing history here,
32:05 how much history can you write,
32:10 and how does it feel to be breaking new frontiers with Brighton?
32:19 We're already writing history because it will be our first knockout game
32:24 of the club's history tomorrow.
32:27 We know where we come from,
32:30 it was not an easy way to get here,
32:34 so we will be humble, but we're also full of confidence.
32:38 Pascal, thank you for your time.
32:42 Rome, an ancient city, very enticing and inspiring,
32:48 obviously an arena of gladiators here.
32:51 Do you find being in this city quite inspiring as an athlete?
32:56 Yes, I think it's a beautiful city.
32:59 I was here before, one year ago,
33:02 and I like the city a lot.
33:06 The movie Gladiator is one of my favourite movies.
33:10 But I'm here for different reasons now,
33:15 and it's even nicer to be here today
33:18 because, as I just said, we're really excited for the game tomorrow.
33:25 Pascal, this game is played in a special setting,
33:29 Rome, a city that is a source of inspiration for an athlete.
33:35 What does it feel like to be here today?
33:38 Yes, Rome is a beautiful city.
33:40 I was here a year ago, and I really like the city.
33:43 Gladiator is one of my favourite movies.
33:46 It's nice to be here, but we're here to play a game,
33:50 and we can't wait for it to start.
33:53 Thank you.
33:55 Grazie.
33:57 Grazie.
33:59 Bye.
34:00 [BLANK_AUDIO]