Roberto De Zerbi said he was ready to leave last Friday after Olympique de Marseille's defeat against Auxerre (1-3). But for the Olympian management, this is out of the question. The Italian coach is still the man for the job, according to Medhi Benatia.
“He chose OM. When you know the character, you know he fits this city. It's love, football, passion. He told me: 'If I'm the problem, don't hesitate. I don't need the money.' When we talk about responsibilities, he took his own. The confidence we have in him, I don’t even need to talk about it,” confided the OM sports advisor this Tuesday evening on RMC.
“He’s the man for the job. He's a golden guy, he lives for football.” adds Benatia, who refutes the idea of a crisis for OM. “We are 3rd in the ranking”,
he says, hoping for a good run in the Coupe de France and qualification for the next Champions League.
From Zerbi, Benatia didn't really believe it
In any case, there is no question of the Olympian management losing confidence in De Zerbi. The arrival of the Olympian coach was seen as a very nice move, of which Benatia revealed behind the scenes. “I already had contact with Roberto. We were in regular discussions. He has always been a coach that I adore. There was Manchester on him, I knew it. He liked the way we approached him with Pablo, the respect we showed him. We showed him how important it was that we leave with him. We jumped at the chance, even though at first, I didn't really believe in it. I had returned to Dubai with the family. I told him: 'I have a plane at 11:30 p.m., tomorrow I'm in Milan I can see you'. He said to me: 'Medhi, just what you're offering me is huge.' »
“He already knew Pablo, it was easy. As soon as we talked to him about Marseille, the guy listened. He needed this passion. Last year, we played against him. He knew the stadium. The objective is to give this team 40% of the coach's character, of his personality. If we have that, we may not be able to tickle Paris, but we will have the objective, which is to enter the Champions League”summarizes Benatia.
