De Zerbi: Fans' enjoyment is the best part of football

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Italian has been impressed by the atmosphere created by our fans at recent games.

Charlie Hanson

2022-11-11T15:20:00Z

Roberto De Zerbi thanks the Albion fans who made the trip to the Emirates.

Roberto De Zerbi wants his team to always start games quickly to give fans something to cheer from the kick-off.

The head coach has enjoyed Albion supporters getting behind the team in recent at home against Chelsea and away to Arsenal.

“Fans are very, very important. I would like my team always to start the game at 150% but for only one thing – because if you are playing at home and you start the opening 15 minutes strongly your fans can play with you and you’re playing with 12, not 11.

“The same happened when I was in other places. In Foggia, in the third division in Italy, the fans are very hard so the strategy was clear – to play with them. The same with Chelsea here for example. The beginning of that game was important - to play with the fans.”

The 43-year-old specifically remembers seeing a fan in the away end at Arsenal having a great time.

“There is a picture when Mitoma scored the second goal at the Emirates Stadium. The image I have in my head is of one woman in her 60s, 65 maybe? And the most beautiful part is the enjoyment – for the players, for the fans and for me.”

Albion head into Sunday’s game on the back of three consecutive wins but Roberto says that the victories have played no part in preparation for the game against Aston Villa at the Amex on Sunday.

“You can't forget [the wins] but the most important thing is to start again on the day after the win and in the same way. I want players to enjoy themselves always in training sessions, in the games before the games and when we score with our fans.”