"Luis Enrique was extraordinary": Marseillais Roberto de Zerbi pays tribute to his Parisian counterpart

The OM coach wants to close the gap with PSG, while acknowledging their current dominance. He also praises the remarkable work of Luis Enrique.

By Le Parisien

Roberto De Zerbi paid tribute to Luis Enrique. (Photo by Philippe Lecoeur/FEP/Icon Sport)

On the eve of his second season at the helm of Olympique de Marseille, Roberto De Zerbi spoke at length to L'Equipe on Tuesday. The Italian coach is more ambitious than ever: to close the gap with Paris Saint-Germain. But before talking about a revolution, the Italian coach begins with a frank observation .

"We want to compete with Paris better than we did last season. I'm not saying PSG is bigger than OM. I'm saying they've been stronger than OM so far. I'm not the one saying that." For the record, OM finished second in Ligue 1, 19 points behind Paris.

Clear-headed, De Zerbi refuses to hide behind symbols. According to him, talking about a "Classic" between OM and PSG no longer really makes sense given the imbalance in the confrontations in recent years.

"The Clasico is Juve – Inter: over ten matches, four wins for Inter, five for Juve, and one draw. The Clasico, PSG – OM, over 23 matches, 19 wins for Paris, three draws, and one win for OM. For me, it's not a Clasico. Afterwards, if you want to continue talking about Clasico, talk about Clasico."

Beyond the numbers, it's the impression left by the 2024-2025 version of PSG that strikes De Zerbi. A team deprived of its historic stars—Mbappé, Messi, Neymar—but driven by a strong collective project, masterfully orchestrated by Luis Enrique.

"When we play against PSG, we want to win, we want to compete, but the truth is there. Paris, last season, was almost unbeatable . And this Paris, which didn't have Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi, or Neymar, was more of a team than the one before. In this respect, Luis Enrique was extraordinary."

Interviewed in June on the Italian podcast "Supernova," the OM coach explained PSG's resounding 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in the Champions League final. "Italy didn't know PSG, Italy underestimated them, Italian football was presumptuous, not Inter," he explained. "They didn't know they were kicking off for a throw-in, they didn't know Dembelé was ready like that, they didn't know Doué had talent on par with Yamal, that Vitinha was perhaps the strongest midfielder in the world today, that João Neves was trained by Portugal, they didn't know which country Pacho came from."