Latest news with #RobertoDeZerbi
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Marseille reach agreement for Aubameyang return
Marseille have reached an agreement to sign their former star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on a free transfer, according to journalist Santi Aouna. The Gabonese striker moved from Marseille to Al-Qadsiah last summer on a two-year deal but terminated his contract with the Saudi Pro League club after just one season. Premier League clubs and Saudi giants Al Ettifaq came forward with a lucrative proposal, but the former Arsenal star had his heart set on a return to the Ligue 1 giants. The 36-year-old will pen a two-year contract until 2027 with Les Minots. Aubameyang has shown that he is ageing like a fine wine after a prolific campaign in Saudi Arabia last season. He netted 21 goals and three assists in all competitions, including the strike in the defeat in the King's Cup final against Al Ettifaq. Even in the 2023/24 season, Aubameyang was at the peak of his powers, netting 30 goals and 11 assists as well as finishing as the Europa League's top scorer. The former Barcelona star will look to replicate his rich vein of form for Roberto De Zerbi's side this season, where they will compete in the Champions League. Aubameyang will compete with talented Algerian Amine Gouiri for the centre-forward role at Marseille. Les Phoceens are also actively scouring the market for a winger, and Juventus' Timothy Weah is at the top of their wishlist. The former Lille star is not in Juve's plans and has reportedly agreed personal terms over a move to Marseille. De Zerbi's side are also monitoring Feyenoord's Igor Paixao and Lyon's Malick Fofana.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Greenwood transfer: Atletico Madrid considering signing ex-Man United star
Former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood has turned around his career in France. Last summer, United decided to permanently cut ties with their academy product due to off-field issues. Olympique de Marseille showed a serious interest in handing Greenwood an opportunity to rejuvenate his career and reached an agreement with United over a deal worth £26.7 million. Despite some hiccups and suggestions of disagreements with Roberto De Zerbi, Greenwood enjoyed a prolific campaign in Ligue 1. No player scored more league goals (21) than him in France's top flight last season. Atletico Madrid interested in signing Mason Greenwood According to Fichajes, Atletico Madrid have renewed their interest in Greenwood on the back of his 'remarkable' season. Before moving to the south of France, Greenwood spent a season-long loan at Getafe. Atletico were widely reported to be one of the Spanish giants monitoring his performance in La Liga. The Spanish outlet claim that Greenwood's experience in Spain make him an 'attractive candidate' for Atletico, who are keen to strengthen their attack with a young and versatile forward. It is understood that Los Colchoneros are 'confident' their relationship with the player's representatives will give them an edge in the race for his signature. Atletico are reportedly already 'working on the numbers' before making a serious push for him. Recently, The Peoples Person relayed a report claiming the Marseille star is the subject of a mammoth offer from Saudi Arabia. Manchester United to benefit from Mason Greenwood's transfer United will be closely following Greenwood's situation as they will receive a sizeable transfer windfall if he leaves Marseille. The Red Devils included a 50 per cent sell-on clause in their agreement with the French outfit in 2024. United have already raised around £15m this summer from sell-on clauses they included in contracts of Anthony Elanga, Álvaro Carreras and Maxi Oyedele. Feature image Miguel Medina via Getty Images Follow us on Bluesky: @
New York Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Dunk's contribution to Brighton's rise is close to immeasurable – but it is time to upgrade him
It's time to start an uncomfortable conversation. It's time for Brighton & Hove Albion to upgrade Lewis Dunk. Being a one-club player and captaining your boyhood club is just as sacrosanct as it is rare in 2025. The 33-year-old is inseparable from Brighton's rise over the past two decades. When they won League One in 2011, Dunk was in his first full season as a professional. Advertisement He was Brighton's top scorer across all competitions in 2014-15 (seven goals) as the club just stayed up in the Championship. There was his indomitable partnership with Shane Duffy, registering the most clean sheets in the Championship as Brighton won promotion under Chris Hughton, and they were the bedrock that helped the club stabilise in the Premier League. When Graham Potter succeeded Hughton in the summer of 2019, and the club changed strategy — focusing their recruitment on younger players and transforming their style on the pitch — Dunk reinvented himself. Having defended the box most weeks, he was now asked to play against pressure, stay on the ball, and break lines. He also replaced Bruno Saltor as club captain from the 2019-20 campaign. Dunk's new partner in the heart of defence was Adam Webster, then a club-record signing from Bristol City in August 2019. Potter tweaked his shape, sometimes picking two centre-backs and other times three, but Dunk stayed. His evolution earned him an England call-up just over 12 months after his Premier League debut. Then in 2022 came Roberto De Zerbi and the most extreme build-up tactics: stand beside the six-yard box, keep your sole on the ball until opponents press you, then play short passes into the midfielders. Out of possession, the centre-backs were required to man-mark opponents and press all the way into the opponents' third. Levi Colwill joined on a season-long loan from Chelsea because the system needed an athletic, left-footed centre-back next to Dunk. That season, he turned 31, and played 36 of 38 league games as Brighton finished a club-record sixth to qualify for Europe for the first time. Dunk captained them in the Europa League in the 2023-24 season, with Brighton topping a group that contained Marseille, AEK Athens and Ajax before being eliminated by Roma in the round of 16. His centre-back partner had changed again, with Jan Paul van Hecke, a Netherlands international, establishing himself under De Zerbi and then current head coach, Fabian Hurzeler. The question, when Dunk one day retires, is where they put the statue and what they make it out of. Everton's Seamus Coleman is the only longer-serving player at a Premier League club. In another universe, Dunk's ceiling might have been the Championship or a bottom-half Premier League team. It speaks to how easy he is to coach, his talent and his capacity for reinvention that four very different coaches have viewed him as leadership material and a core player. Advertisement It became clear in 2024-25, though, especially on a physical level, that Dunk's peak years are behind him. A mix of chest and calf injuries kept him out of much of the second half of the season. He only made 23 league starts and clocked just over 2,000 minutes, his fewest in eight years as a Premier League player. Hurzeler said in May that Dunk was not regularly training and thus 'not on his highest physical level'. The added difficulty is that the physical demands for Premier League centre-backs have risen sharply in recent years, more than any other position. Hurzeler called 2024-25 'a difficult season' for Dunk. 'He never really got into his rhythm,' the head coach explained. He missed the start of Brighton's pre-season after being part of England's squad at Euro 2024, disrupting his club campaign before it had even begun. 'But he is always there. He never hides when he gets critical feedback,' Hurzeler added. 'He never hides when he has a bad performance. He always stands as a man, and that shows big, big character. He is getting more and more into the role of being a communicator. 'I always emphasise that it's important from our skipper. No matter if Lewis starts or not, he will be in the squad and he has an impact on our team by his authority, by his experience, by his voice.' Dunk has won six England caps and made more than 250 Premier League appearances, adding valuable experience to the second-youngest team in the league last term. Even Hurzeler is only 32. 'That's the challenge here, that we have to do it with a very young squad,' said Hurzeler at the end of last season on trying to achieve success and win silverware. 'The teams who win the title are mostly mature and have a lot of mature players in the squad.' As he approaches his 16th season as a professional, Dunk's know-how might be worth more to Brighton than what he can offer on the pitch. Hurzeler said during the run-in last season that 'we weren't able to have a lot of leaders on the pitch', even though Brighton took 13 points from their final five matches to finish eighth. Advertisement Dunk did not play in the final three fixtures and missed most of Brighton's six-game winning streak across February and March — he went off injured at half-time of the FA Cup win at home to Chelsea, the first match in that run. Beyond availability, there was too much of a reliance on Van Hecke to start Brighton's attacks from defence last term. Van Hecke, who turned 25 in June, played the most line-breaking passes of any Premier League player, according to SkillCorner. He accounted for 22.5 per cent of all of Brighton's progressive passes, the highest rate of any player at any club in the division. As a right-footer playing on the left, Dunk is predisposed to having fewer forward passing angles available. It is why he rarely, if ever, carries the ball out of defence, as it would limit his passing options inside. Looking at how Dunk distributed the ball last season, the relative infrequency of his central line-breaking passes is an issue. Instead, his trademark upfield pass has become a lofted ball either to the feet of left-winger Kaoru Mitoma, or in behind for the speedy Japan international to chase (see the most and third-most common passes on the graphic above). Here are three instances last season of Dunk playing that pass first time with his right foot. Dunk's relative one-footedness, especially compared to Webster — who can use either foot when he plays left centre-back — is why opponents often target him with pressing traps. Olivier Boscagli has joined on a free transfer from PSV and, as a natural left-footer, could play a crucial role. The 27-year-old recorded six assists from centre-back last season and completed the most progressive passes in the Dutch Eredivisie (363 according to FBref, 79 more than second-placed Joey Veerman). Dunk's physicality used to be his super-strength. Few possessed his particular blend of tenacious shot-blocking and nonchalant chest passes and headers back to the goalkeeper. Injuries, age and a lack of consistent minutes have reduced that ability. One of the clearest examples was a drop-off in attacking output. Advertisement In Potter's first two seasons, Dunk was among the league's most effective centre-backs from set pieces, scoring eight times and registering more than 60 shots. The 2024-25 campaign was his first without a goal since 2013-14. He has increasingly struggled against big, physical strikers, such as Aleksandar Mitrovic when the Serbia international was at Fulham, or Romelu Lukaku, who had the better of Dunk twice in March 2024 (Roma's 4-0 victory against Brighton in the Europa League round of 16 first leg, and in Belgium's 2-2 draw with England at Wembley three weeks later. Brighton's worst half in any match last season was the first 45 minutes away to Chelsea in September. Hurzeler went with an exceptionally high line, pairing Dunk and Webster at centre-back as Van Hecke was injured. They struggled against Chelsea's fast front four and the incisive passing of Enzo Fernandez and Cole Palmer. Six through balls were completed in behind the Brighton defence as Palmer scored four first-half goals to turn an early 1-0 lead for Hurzeler's side into a 4-1 half-time deficit. Here, as former Brighton loanee Colwill splits the press, Fernandez receives in the half-space and wriggles clear from Carlos Baleba. Dunk and Webster are two-v-one against centre-forward Nicolas Jackson. Webster, really, should jump to Fernandez here. What breaks the defence and beats the offside trap is Palmer's run between Dunk and Pervis Estupinan. Fernandez slips the England forward through, and neither Dunk nor Webster is even back in the penalty area by the time he dinks a shot past Bart Verbruggen, which hits the post. An even simpler move exposed the high line later on. Palmer rotated wide and hit a first-time pass in behind as the Brighton defence shuffled across. Dunk ended up square and lost track of Noni Madueke when the winger spun him and raced through. With Dunk's recovery speed lower than it once was — and never a particular strength in the first place — both Webster and Ferdi Kadioglu cover for Dunk and throw themselves at shots. Transitioning Dunk into more of a squad role is best for all involved. There was a time when Brighton struggled without him. He only missed four games across Brighton's first three Premier League seasons and it was not until the end of 2020-21 that they won a game in the competition without him — a 3-2 comeback win at home against Manchester City. Advertisement Until the end of the 2023-24 season, Brighton's record in Premier League games without Dunk was close to relegation level: four wins, 12 draws and nine defeats — just 24 points from 23 games. In 2024-25, though, they recorded nine wins, three draws and only one defeat (2-1 away against Liverpool) when Dunk did not start. Webster and Van Hecke made for a fine, balanced pairing. This does not need to become a Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal situation where a legend overstays and overplays to the detriment of everyone. All progress requires change. Brighton could not have got to this point without Dunk. The future, though, means they need to start enacting succession plans.
BBC News
09-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Numbers that show Ferguson's depreciation at Brighton
When Evan Ferguson terrorised Newcastle United on 2 September 2023, he became only the fourth player in Premier League history to score a hat-trick before turning previous season, shortly after his 18th birthday, he had broken into the team and scored three times in his first five world was at his feet - and big clubs were two years on, and still only 20, his career has stalled to the point ex-Brighton forward Warren Aspinall says it is time to "sell him for whatever we get". Clearly, his time on the pitch has been curtailed by injuries, so anything looking at his goal and assist output over the past season would probably be the record, though, six goals apiece in 2022-23 and 2023-24 were followed by just one last as the graph above shows, both his passing and shooting accuracy also dropped off last season - not the sign of a player who is maturing but rather hinting at one that is could be argued his lack of minutes makes it harder for him to pick up the rhythm required to be in sync with his team-mates - but even in previous campaigns he was not starting every week under Roberto de after all, those who make a splash as a teenager do not necessarily cut loose in the water until later in their career. Everyone progresses now, it looks more like that his rip-roaring start to life at Brighton established expectations that were reckons a change of scenery could unlock his Brighton sell him, it will be someone else's opportunity to cash in on how that once frightening prospect ultimately turns out.
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Maresca says Chelsea are getting ‘back to where they deserve to be' after reaching Club World Cup final
Maresca says Chelsea are getting 'back to where they deserve to be' after reaching Club World Cup final Enzo Maresca says Chelsea are on the path to being back where they 'deserve to be' after reaching the final of the Club World Cup. Chelsea beat Fluminense 2-0 in a dominant semi-final display with new signing Joao Pedro the man of the match, scoring both goals. Advertisement On the Brazilian's performance, Maresca said: 'We are very happy with Joao, we know that Joao is a very good player and a student. Because he has qualities inside, like today. 'I think another thing that is important about Joao is that he was on holiday, so is a bit more fresh compared to the rest. So it's something that is important to be aware of that. So, I'm happy for Joao. 'We knew how good he was as a player. The reason why we brought him is because this season we faced many teams with a low block. His quality is very good against this kind of team. As a player, as a person, first of all, he is from Brazil. Most of the Brazilian players are very happy with their journey with football. 'Also, he worked with a friend of mine in Brighton, Roberto De Zerbi. I spoke with Roberto a while ago. This is exactly the way he should play. It doesn't mean that he is going to be all season like this. It's not going to happen. But it's good to have him also as an option.' Advertisement Watch the Club World Cup final on DAZN: Chelsea have had a difficult few years since the takeover by BlueCo but Maresca said he is pleased the Blues are back on the right track, having last season won the Conference League and also qualified for the Champions League. 'The last few years have not been what the club deserves or what the history of this club says,' he said. 'This year, luckily, it has gone quite well, (we are) also in the Champions League. In the Conference League we managed to win it and now we are in this final, and we are in the Champions League. We are very proud to help the club to get back to where it deserves to be. Advertisement 'We are very happy, we are very proud to play the final on Sunday. The reason why is because this is the Club World Cup, the best clubs in the world are here. For us to be there on Sunday is something that we are very proud of, so we are very happy.'
