FEATURE | How might Marseille play under Roberto De Zerbi?

Liam Wraith reporting from the Valley Parade.

Roberto De Zerbi has often been famed for his playing philosophies due to their tendency to break the norm. This was the case during the Italian coach’s time at Brighton as his free-flowing and front-footed approach quickly became a hit with fans and the media within the English game.

Recently appointed as the new manager of Marseille, De Zerbi’s return to the UK, for the first time since leaving Brighton, for a pre-season friendly against Sunderland provided some insight into how the former Sassuolo manager may set up at Les Olympiens this season.

Risk vs Reward

Teams coached by the Italian have never been afraid to commit numbers forward. This theme suggests that players at OM will continue to advance aggressively at every opportunity. In possession, this could be seen with the tendency to always play forwards where possible even if a pass could compromise possession of the ball.

De Zerbi’s aggressive approach is rewarding when there is space to attack and gaps to be punished. As showcased against Sunderland, the ability of Amine Harit to find space in midfield and pick out willing runners became a constant threat. Paired with a compact midfield which created more space for a player playing in the whole to operate with more space, the role of a creative or attack-minded midfielder looks to be a crucial cog of the former Brighton manager’s plan.

Although rewarding, the technician’s tactical setup doesn’t come without its risks. Playing out from the back is nothing new in football. The former Sassuolo head coach is one of the modern disciples of the approach and this will clearly continue in his playing philosophy at Marseille. Yet, Sunderland’s man-marking off the ball to cut passing lanes caused Blanco problems when finding an option and resulted in OM losing the ball in dangerous positions on multiple occasions.

Fluid positioning

Marseille played with positional freedom against the EFL Championship side, indicating how the former Shakhtar coach will continue to break the norm with his formations. Building up from the back, Les Olympiens operated with three players in defence with Quentin Merlin vacating his role at left-back. The former Nantes defender would then invert into midfield or push high and wide to keep the opposition guessing.

A midfield two looks to play a key role in receiving possession and moving play forwards. These are perhaps the most rigid roles in the team but still offered support in attack with late runs where possible. The added option of an inverted wing-back and a more advanced midfielder creates an overload in central areas.

Rotation in attack was also a constant theme with Harit/Koné and Moumbagna exchanging positions across the frontline. The freedom given to Harit during the first half as the most advanced midfielder was eye-catching and pivotal in the success Marseille had in the final third.

Tactical flexibility

Some principles of De Zerbi’s philosophy may be constant, but the Italian is not afraid of changing the approach midgame. After the break, Ismaël Koné replaced Amine Harit and adopted a more advanced position alongside Faris Moumbagna in the forward line. The switch did not have the desired effect at first with Sunderland finding momentum and eventually an equaliser. Nevertheless, the tactical switch later paid dividends as the former Watford man danced past two players and scored the pick of the goals to restore the lead.

A tactical switch aimed at exploiting the space behind the Tyneside club’s defence and reducing the challenges of playing out from the back demonstrated a clear intention from the Italian manager to make tactical changes during the game. Unpredictability will undoubtedly make the manager a difficult opponent for coaches across Ligue 1.

GFFN | Liam Wraith