‘It leaves you without words’ – Roberto De Zerbi on killing of Medhi Kessaci | OneFootball

Roberto De Zerbi has always claimed to have a connection with the cities his clubs represents, and this week the Italian was struck by the killing of Mehdi Kessaci, the brother of 22 year-old anti-drug campaigner Amine Kessaci. The young campaigner had set up an association to help the victims and families of drug-related violence, has lost a second brother to suspected criminal gangs in Marseille. “It leaves you without words,” Roberto De Zerbi said at a press conference attended by Get French Football News. “I’m Italian, I come from a city where we’ve had similar episodes. I’m saddened. We know the social problems that exist in Marseille, and through football we try to give satisfaction that goes beyond the game itself.”De Zerbi added that football in Marseille “has another meaning entirely – it lasts all week, not just matchday,” stressing that his squad would continue doing their part for a city “that lives everything intensely.”Kessaci’s 20 year-old brother Medhi was parking his car in the center of Marseille when a motorcycle drew up and the passenger opened fire with a 9mm pistol last week. His elder brother, Brahim, was murdered in 2020. Amine set up an association called Conscience, which was aimed at helping young people from Marseille’s poorer areas to escape drug-related violence. Meanwhile, Marseille will travel to face OGC Nice in Ligue 1 this Friday, before Les Phocéens face Newcastle United in the Champions League next week. GFFN | George Boxall – Reporting from La Commanderie, Marseille