Interviews

De Zerbi: When we wear the shirt, we have to push to win

Brought to you by...

Head coach keen to progress against Chelsea.

By Bruce Talbot • 27 September 2023

By Paul Hazlewood
Roberto De Zerbi's team head into Wednesday night's match after beating Bournemouth on Sunday.

Roberto De Zerbi says there will be no difference to his side’s preparations for tonight’s Carabao Cup tie.  

Albion are fighting on four fronts this season and the trip to Chelsea will be their third game in six days. 

But the head coach insists he will choose a team that can get a positive result at Stamford Bridge and put Albion into the last 16. 

Asked how important the Carabao Cup is, De Zerbi said, “You have to respect our club and fans and of course ourselves. We want to respect the people who come to the stadium [to support the team].  

“To do that we have to play seriously, and we have to give our best. We have to prepare like it is a Premier League or Europa League match.

09:41

MA+ members & STH only - Log-in required

An existing MyAlbion+ membership or season ticket is needed to view this content. Please note that new memberships take 24 hours to be active to view, registering today for Luton Town match streaming will not be valid in time.

De Zerbi's Chelsea press conference

“We have to get used to playing three games in each week. For that we have to push tonight like next Saturday at Aston Villa, then in the Europa League next Thursday and then Liverpool in the Premier League. 

“It’s too far away to speak about winning the competition but for sure we want to play another game in this competition. The mentality of this team is you can’t decide which games you have play seriously and which ones you can’t. When we wear the shirt, we have to push. I only know this way.” 

De Zerbi has made 22 changes over the last three games and there are likely to be more tonight.  

“The best team I can name [will play],” he added. “I have to consider the players who are at risk of injury, maybe the players who can’t play 90, and those who played 90 minutes against Bournemouth can’t play the full game tonight. I have to think about another game on Saturday.”