Roberto De Zerbi reveals he tried to sign Ismaël Bennacer at Brighton | OneFootball

Roberto De Zerbi finally got his man on transfer deadline day as Ismaël Bennacer (27) joined Olympique de Marseille. As revealed by the Italian manager, he attempted to sign the Algeria international while he was manager of Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion.

Bennacer has joined Marseille on loan from AC Milan until the end of the season. Les Phocéens have the option to make the move permanent for €12m at the end of the campaign. He will therefore play under De Zerbi for the first time, however, if he had had his own way, the pair would have worked together at Brighton, as he revealed during a press conference on Friday.

De Zerbi wanted Bennacer as Caicedo replacement

“I wanted him to come when Moises Caicedo went to Chelsea,” revealed the OM manager. “It is a big transfer for us. His characteristics suit our style of play. He is a complete player, a top player and another one for us. He really wanted to come to Marseille. We already spoke about him in August, but we didn’t manage to conclude it. When Medhi Benatia told me that there was the possibility to do it, we stopped the music,” added De Zerbi.

Bennacer, who has missed much of the current campaign with a calf injury, could make his debut for Marseille when they face SCO Angers on Sunday night.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle