‘We have to show courage’: Roberto De Zerbi urges Marseille to meet Liverpool challenge head on

Roberto De Zerbi has challenged his Marseille side to show the same character and determination they displayed against Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month when they face Liverpool in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

After a valiant late fightback that left PSG needing a stoppage-time equaliser from substitute Gonçalo Ramos, Marseille were beaten on penalties a fortnight ago in the Trophée des Champions in Kuwait.

While the defeat left De Zerbi distraught in the dressing room, the Italian saw the performance as a benchmark for his team in terms of “the football, the character, the defensive work, the technique”. 

Now he is demanding that Marseille, currently 16th in the Champions League standings but only three points behind ninth-placed Liverpool, exhibit similar boldness when Arne Slot’s side visit the Stade Vélodrome.

Roberto De Zerbi: ‘We have to play with courage against Liverpool’

“We have to play with courage,” said De Zerbi. “We have the qualities to look them in the eye, like against PSG. In competition, we can lose, but we can also win.

“I’ve never prepared for a match aiming for a draw. We prepare for it and we play to win. If we don’t all run together, we won’t win. That’s essential, especially for the forwards. I always have forwards on the bench. If we experience a drop in energy around the 60th minute, I can make substitutions.”

Both sides need the points if they are to nurture hopes of a top-eight finish, which would obviate the need to negotiate a play-off round by automatically securing a spot in the last 16. 

Unlike Liverpool, who missed a penalty at Anfield in a dour 1-1 draw with Burnley at the weekend, Marseille come into the showdown in buoyant form despite the recent departure of teenage forward Robinio Vaz to Roma. Following a 9-0 evisceration of sixth-tier Bayeux in the Coupe de France last week, De Zerbi’s side won 5-2 at Angers on Saturday to retain third spot in Ligue 1.

De Zerbi: ‘Angers win was the best first half since my arrival’

The latter result left the Italian enthusing about “the best first half since my arrival”, yet hitting the high notes this season has been less of a problem for Marseille than holding them. Looking ahead to the Liverpool showdown, De Zerbi stressed the need for collective endeavour and humility if Marseille are to sustain momentum. 

“I work with my players by explaining one simple thing,” said the former Brighton & Hove Albion manager. “If we want to get past this stage, reach the Champions League, win trophies, we mustn’t think about the match itself. We have the qualities to cause them problems. 

“We need to find the balance between self-esteem and humility: if we think we’re too strong, or that it doesn’t take much to win, we’ll put in performances like the one against [relegation strugglers] Nantes [who claimed a 2-0 win at the Stade Vélodrome at the beginning of the month].”

De Zerbi’s words point towards the larger issue of consistency – or rather a lack of it. It is a theme he highlighted at the weekend, and one likely to define not only Wednesday night’s events, but also his Marseille tenure as a whole.

“We have to be the team we were tonight in every match, for 90 minutes and across the 38 games of the season,” said De Zerbi, who is hopeful of securing a loan deal for Arsenal attacker Ethan Nwaneri. “That is our margin for improvement. We can play very well against Liverpool but, if we’re not at it, we can lose against anyone. If we are well prepared, we can compete with everyone.”