Brighton have appointed Roberto De Zerbi as their new head coach on a four-year contract.
The Italian was out of work after leaving Shakhtar Donetsk in July following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Before that, he spent 3 years leading Sassuolo on the Serie A side before moving to Shakhtar.
De Zebri met chairman Tony Bloom, chief executives Paul Barber and David Weir in London earlier this week and flew to Brighton on Friday before watching a closed-door friendly at Amex on Saturday.
Brighton have also agreed deals with De Zebri’s coaching staff and hope to secure the group’s spot for their Premier League clash with Liverpool on Saturday a week.
Brighton are currently fourth in the Premier League and have been looking for a new manager since Graham Potter left Chelsea earlier this month.
Chairman Tony Bloom said: “I am truly delighted that Roberto has agreed to become our new head coach. Roberto’s teams play an exciting and courageous brand of football, and I believe that the style His way and tactical approach will fit perfectly into our existing squad.”
Technical director David Weir said, “Roberto has demonstrated a solid ability with his work in Italy and Ukraine, and what he achieved at Sassuolo is certainly outstanding.
“During his brief time with Shakhtar, he achieved further success, leading the club to cup success and topping the Ukrainian league before war made his time there. suddenly stopped.
“We are delighted to welcome Roberto and we look forward to inducting him into our squad and providing all the support needed for him to deliver on his coaching philosophy and to help the players continue to have a brilliant start to the season.”
Vice President and CEO Paul Barber added: “We looked at a bunch of excellent candidates but Roberto was our number one pick from the start and the only one we spoke to.
“It’s no secret that our president is constantly monitoring potential coaches, both here in our domestic leagues, throughout Europe and around the world as part of his job. our succession planning.
“We feel Roberto is the ideal cultural and technical fit for Brighton & Hove Albion, and the right person to continue developing the club and working with this outstanding group of players.”
