Roberto De Zerbi hopes to help goalkeeper Jason Steele gain England recognition after claiming Lewis Dunk’s international recall is a comparable achievement to Brighton qualifying for the Europa League.
Seagulls skipper Dunk has been included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for next month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia, having been in international exile since his debut in November 2018.
The 31-year-old has been rewarded for his key role in Albion’s sixth-placed Premier League finish.
Former Middlesbrough, Blackburn and Sunderland keeper Steele has also been instrumental during a remarkable season at the Amex Stadium after dislodging Robert Sanchez as first choice in early March.
Brighton head coach De Zerbi believes the 32-year-old is capable of joining Dunk in the national team set-up to compete with the likes of Jordan Pickford, Aaron Ramsdale, Nick Pope and Sam Johnstone.
“It’s great news,” the Italian said of Dunk’s call-up.
“I think it’s maybe the same big news like Europa League because to help one of our players to achieve a target so important, so prestigious is a proud (moment).
“We have to be proud – not only the coaches but the players – for one player.
“We will work in the next season to help Jason Steele to achieve the same target of Lewis Dunk because he has the quality to achieve one target so important.
“In my vision, in my idea, Jason Steele is a top keeper. It’s difficult to find another keeper of this level.
“I study football 24 hours per day but it’s very hard to find another keeper with this quality.”
Steele, a former England Under-21 international who represented Great Britain at the London 2012 Olympics, had never played in the top flight until last term.
He has registered six clean sheets and one assist during the past three months, having been preferred to Sanchez due to his ability to play out from the back.
Steele joined the Seagulls in June 2018 – on the back of suffering successive relegations to League One with Blackburn and Sunderland – and had to wait more than three years for his league debut.
“Football is nice because the past is not important,” said De Zerbi.
“I have to analyse the present and sometimes the potential in the future but the past is not important.
“You can change your life in one day, if you believe in yourself and you believe in work.
“And I told him the same: ‘Jason, you have to think you can change. I give you the possibility to change your life, to change your career and you have to believe in yourself because I help you and you help me and you help the team’.”
Brighton complete an unforgettable campaign at Aston Villa on Sunday after cementing their Europa League spot with Wednesday evening’s 1-1 draw at home to champions Manchester City.
De Zerbi, who succeeded Graham Potter in September, feels Albion can progress significantly next term.
“I am looking forward to working in pre-season because I think we can improve in a lot of things,” he said.
“We have played not more than 70 per cent and we have another 30 per cent of improvement.”
Edu placed on gardening leave by Arsenal and replaced by Jason Ayto
Edu will spend the next six months on gardening leave, while assistant sporting director Jason Ayto will take up his role during the search for a full-time replacement.
The news comes after the announcement earlier in the week that Edu was to leave Arsenal to work with Evangelos Marinakis' multi-club group, which includes Nottingham Forest.
The Gunners are giving themselves a long window to replace their sporting director and are prepared to wait for the right candidate.
Despite his abrupt departure partway through the season, the feeling towards Edu is of gratitude after installing a robust structure that the club can now work with.
The Brazilian is known to be a friend of Marinakis, who values the esteem in which Edu is held by his peers.
The salary offered to him for his move, as reported by Sky Sports News, would mean only Pep Guardiola, Mikel Arteta and Unai Emery earn more than him among Premier League managers.
The role itself, meanwhile, will see Edu act as the CEO of the group.
'Outstanding' Jones has improved since becoming a father, says Slot
Arne Slot believes Curtis Jones' upturn in form for Liverpool has coincided with the 23-year-old recently becoming a father for the first time.
Jones has played a starring role for the Reds in recent weeks, which has earned him a call-up by Lee Carsley for England’s upcoming Nations League fixtures this month.
The midfielder shone during Liverpool's 4-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, notching a sublime assist for Luis Diaz's 61st minute opener.
Jones also created the joint-most chances (three) along with Ryan Gravenberch at Anfield, and is now pushing Dominik Szoboszlai for a starting spot in Liverpool's midfield.
"With Curtis he became a fighter and I had nothing to do with that. Since the moment he became a father [last month], he started putting great performances in," Slot said.
"He already did in the first few weeks of pre-season and I thought he was a quality player.
"His performances dropped a bit but from the moment he became a father he has been outstanding again.
"It might have a bit to do with that, but I think it is more to do with how the team plays. As a result of that, individual performances are good as well."
Jones has started four of the Reds' last six games in all competitions, notching four goal contributions (one goal, three assists) in those games.
But the midfielder has had to bide his time under Slot, with the Liverpool boss challenging Jones to add consistency to his game in the coming weeks.
"He has a lot of qualities on the ball, when he has it he's never afraid to do something special. Sometimes he is a bit too over-confident but confidence is important," Slot added.
"He also has an incredibly high work-rate and we can trust him defensively. You saw how he performed against Cole Palmer.
"If he wants to continue progressing he has to show every three days these performances."
Liverpool's fine start to the season continued with their midweek thrashing of Leverkusen, and they are now top of the Premier League and Champions League tables.
The Reds' victory over Brighton in the league saw Slot become just the fifth manager to win as many as eight of his first 10 Premier League games in charge, after John Gregory (1998), Guus Hiddink (2009), Carlo Ancelotti (2009) and Ange Postecoglou (2023).
Of the previous four, only Postecoglou failed to win his 11th match in the competition, though Slot faces a stern test this weekend when Aston Villa visit Merseyside.
The Dutchman, however, insisted that his side's flying start to the season had not come as a surprise.
"I don't think surprise is the right word to use because I knew the quality of our team. But quality is one thing and consistency is another," Slot concluded.
"I am not surprised because I saw the energy my players put in on a daily basis.
"Sometimes a bit of luck comes with us as well. Most of our results were deserved, but some have been a close call.
"In general, I'm not surprised because of the quality that was in the team and when I started working with them, I saw how much effort they put in to get these results."
Sugar Boyz ready for crucial Nations League playoff against Cuba
The Sugar Boyz, St. Kitts and Nevis' men’s national football team is back in training as they prepare for their Concacaf Nations League Playoff clash against Cuba. After a brief rest period following their matches against the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands, the team resumed training on Monday, November 4, at the National Bank Group of Companies Technical Center. Head Coach Austin “Dico” Huggins shared insights into the preparations underway as the team looks to advance toward a potential second qualification for the Concacaf Gold Cup.
“After we played against Cayman Islands and BVI, we had a brief rest period. So we're now beginning our training session from today,” Huggins explained.
Coach Huggins emphasized the significance of these playoff matches, noting the challenging task ahead. “It's going to be very hard here in training. We've got to make sure the guys are mentally prepared, physically prepared, knowing the task we have at hand. Cuba is a very good team, very professional team. So we're going to have to take them very seriously. And we are playing the first game at home, so that should be to our advantage,” he added.
He further outlined the rigorous training plan to ensure the team is ready for the intense match-up. “Our preparation will be very strenuous, very hard, very intense so that we could be better prepared for the task.”
With the first leg at home on November 14 at the NBGC Technical Center, Huggins reassured fans of an improved performance compared to their last outing against the Cayman Islands. “We're going to have a better showing, for sure. Like I said, we're playing against Cuba. The guys are up for the task,” he said.
The Sugar Boyz will then travel to Santiago de Cuba for the return leg on November 18 at the Antonio Maceo Stadium.
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