Roberto De Zerbi is ‘looking forward’ to Thursday’s Premier League clash with third-place Newcastle as Brighton look to continue their momentum off the back of Sunday’s victory against title challenger Arsenal.
Brighton currently sit sixth in the Premier League as Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa ramp up the pressure, who are both one point behind the Seagulls but have played two more games, as De Zerbi’s side ‘needs to accept pressure and intensity’ ahead of the trip to St James’ Park.
Last time out for Eddie Howe’s side, it was a ‘strange game’ after they suffered a slight bump in their hopes for Champions League football next season. Sam Allardyce’s first home game in charge of Leeds United saw the Magpies draw with the Whites.
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Thoughts going into the tie
The two sides met back in August as a dominant Brighton display was not enough to secure three points after a man-of-the-match performance from Nick Pope saw the points shared in a goalless draw.
De Zerbi said: "They're a very strong team. I think it’s a very tough game, but not just for Brighton, for everyone, every team. We're fighting for our history and target. If we want to reach the historic target, we have to make historic results.
“The game is another home sell-out,” De Zerbi continued: “For me, it’s an honour to play in this stadium [St James’ Park].”
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De Zerbi on Eddie Howe
Howe has received some big praise from the Italian head coach ahead of their clash at St James’ Park, calming Newcastle ‘deserve to play in the Champions League,’ as De Zerbi explained: “Eddie Howe has done an incredible job, they deserve to play in the Champions League.”
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Team news
De Zerbi has reported that he will have ‘more or less [have] the same squad as against Arsenal,’ when Brighton travel to Newcastle.
The Italian head coach said: "No [Joel] Veltman, no [Adam] Webster, no [Solly] March, and no [Robert] Sanchez - Julio Enciso is okay but in terms of first eleven for tomorrow, I am losing sleep for the best team.”
"We'll more or less have the same squad as against Arsenal. I need to think of the condition of my players.
"We can't lose anymore players, we can't take anymore risks - but we will aim to win [against Newcastle], the first of four games in 12 days."
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We have to fight to reach our targets'
De Zerbi has continued to express his feelings towards the final push for a top-six spot, as Brighton look to secure European football.
“We have to forget we won at Arsenal otherwise we will lose 100% to Newcastle - we have 58 points which is not enough to qualify for the Europa League,” acknowledged De Zerbi.
“We want to become a bigger team in the future than we are now, and my job is to improve the players and to dream, and I always want to reach the impossible target and set a bigger target.”
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‘He decides everything, not me, not the club’
De Zerbi has explained why Robert Sanchez has dropped is because the Spanish international ‘wanted it this way.’
Sanchez was not a part of the matchday squad that destroyed Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates last weekend, which raised a lot of eyebrows considering some fans believed he could have started after the disaster against Everton.
Jason Steele has been in between the sticks since early March and looks almost certain to start against Newcastle tonight, whilst Sanchez will not be a part of the matchday squad, yet again.
“With Robert, we spoke before the Arsenal game and we decided together the best solution was to stay home,” De Zerbi confirmed on Wednesday.
“He decides everything. Robert decides, and at the moment, it's like this. He wanted it this way, not me, not the club.”
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‘We will speak about him later’
The Seagulls have been heavily linked with Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud, who is set to leave Die Schwarzgelben on a free transfer this summer.
Dahoud, who has been with Dortmund since 2017, has only made ten appearances this season and De Zerbi has made it clear that he is a big fan of the German midfielder.
The Italian head coach suggested that Dahoud could be a Brighton player soon: “I know very well [Mahmoud] Dahoud but it is not official. It is not official yet.”
“We will speak about him later, at the next press conference, or I don't know,” he continued.
“He is not my player yet. If you want I can talk to you about Billy Gilmour, [Alexis] Mac Allister, [Yasin] Ayari but other players I don't want to speak about."