Soccer Why De Zerbi 'needs to be careful'
Simon Stone, BBC Sport
Brighton boss Roberto de Zerbi has won himself admirers and plaudits in equal measure with his work at Amex Stadium since replacing Graham Potter.
The Italian has improved on Potter’s work and created what is acknowledged to be one of the most watchable teams in Europe.
After a tricky start to the Seagulls' first European campaign, successive wins against Ajax mean victory against AEK Athens in Greece on 30 November will confirm a place in the Europa League play-off round at least. and that would mean a meeting with a team dropping out of the Champions League (AC Milan are currently one of the clubs in third).
The lack of a Premier League win since 24 September has largely been overlooked. But De Zerbi needs to be careful.
Passion is part of his DNA. It cannot be taken away. Similarly, he has legitimate grievances over some key decisions over the past calendar year.
But he should be wary of broad brush statements that come across negatively.
De Zerbi may have been frustrated by Mahmoud Dahoud’s red card on Sunday, and also the draw with Sheffield United.
His complaints should have been identified. By coming out with such a wider statement, he looked like a bad loser. He should be better than that.
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