Roberto De Zerbi’s decision to step down as Brighton manager at the end of the Premier League season shocked the footballing world.
We now know exactly why he left, and the reason is not surprising.
According to The Athletic’s Andy Naylor, the most reputable reporter for Brighton news, De Zerbi stepped down due to conflicts with club owner Tony Bloom over the club’s recruitment policy.
De Zerbi wanted more spending
De Zerbi took over a young Brighton team from Graham Potter in September 2022. The Italian led that group to a remarkable 6th place finish and a place in the 2023/24 Europa League.
Brighton then sold star midfielders Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo to Liverpool and Chelsea, respectively. While the club broke their transfer record to bring in João Pedro Watford, it was clear that De Zerbi was not happy with how Brighton’s summer transfer window went.
“The policy of the club, and the secret of our club, is to develop those players who are not there yet,” De Zerbi said in December once Brighton’s season started to fall off the wheels.
Reports of De Zerbi’s discontent grew from there as the season went on, especially as the club started to lose more and more players to injury and as the Italian started to get linked to other jobs.
When asked about his future in March, De Zerbi revealed that he may leave the club if he and Tony Bloom could not come to an agreement about the club’s transfer strategy.
“I want to speak to Tony Bloom about the plan for the club in order to decide my future, I want to know what is the project. I want to keep my ambition. If I’m not motivated, I won’t stay at Brighton,” De Zerbi said.
In the end, it turns out De Zerbi lost his motivation to manage a side like Brighton unwilling to invest.
Brighton’s transfer strategy
As De Zerbi noted in December, Brighton’s transfer strategy is to buy young players and sell them on for a profit. The club rarely spends more than £20 million on a player.
This has worked well for the Seagulls, but, as we saw this season, it can only take them so far. The club is now looking to spend more this offseason.
Reportedly, Brighton are looking to sign a center midfielder, right back, forward, and young center back. The club are looking at targets who cost £10m-£30, around similar to what Brighton paid for Carlos Baleba last season.
If these reports are true, Brighton could spend more this summer than they have in years. Evidently though, it wasn’t enough to keep De Zerbi around.
