‘I didn’t flee Shakhtar even when Putin threw his bombs at Kyiv’ – De Zerbi

Roberto De Zerbi offered to leave Olympique de Marseille before the international break. After receiving the support of the hierarchy, he has now reaffirmed his commitment to the club.

While Marseille are third in Ligue 1, nine points behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain, their performances at the Vélodrome are lacking. His side lost 3-0 in Le Classique, with the fans leaving at half-time. There's no shame in losing to Les Parisiens, but the way it happened was a concern.

Two weeks later there was certainly cause for concern when OM went into half-time 3-0 against AJ Auxerre. Fans again made their way to the exit of the Vélodrome. It was an emotional De Zerbi who came to the press conference after the match after the 3-1 defeat.

“If I'm the problem, I'm ready to leave,” the Italian said. However, during the international break he received the support of Medhi Benatia, the club's sporting director. “The confidence we have in him, I don't even have to talk about that […] He has our full confidence and when he returns to training everything will be normal,” Benatia told RMC Sport.

The Zerbi has now reaffirmed his commitment, saying he would not “run” and referring to the fact that he has not left Shakhtar Donetsk even after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. “I'm not resigning. I'm not running. I did not flee Shakhtar even when (Vladimir) Putin threw his bombs at Kiev. I won't run away. I wanted to come here. I believe in this OM. I believe in the players I coach,” the former Brighton and Hove Albion manager told reporters on Friday.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle