Europa: De Rossi reveals Roma watched Premier League matches to prepare for Brighton’s test
Ahead of Roma’s Europa League clash, coach Daniele De Rossi revealed that his team had to watch Brighton’s Premier League games to prepare.
De Rossi said Roma watched Brighton’s games against Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester City.
Despite this preparation, De Rossi still maintains it is difficulty predicting their upcoming clash.
The Italian legend is set to face his friend and Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi, who he has much respect for.
He praises De Zerbi’s coaching style and noted Brighton’s strong squad.
![UCL: Gyokeres told he was 'barely visible' during Sporting vs Arsenal clash Viktor Gyokeres endured a frustrating return to Lisbon as Arsenal squeezed out a 1-0 win over Sporting CP in their Champions League quarter-final first leg, with the striker coming under heavy criticism from the Portuguese media. The Swedish forward, who previously starred for Sporting, was largely ineffective throughout the encounter at the Estadio Jose Alvalade. Despite a strong reception from home supporters, his performance failed to match expectations. Local outlet A Bola summed up his performance bluntly, stating: “The striker celebrates with a mask, [but] seemed masked: he was barely visible.” Other publications echoed similar sentiments, with O Jogo noting that Sporting “stifled” their former talisman, while Público described him as “largely absent from the game.” Gyokeres, who scored 97 goals in 102 appearances during his time in Portugal, managed just 17 touches and struggled to impose himself against a defence that appeared well-drilled in neutralising his strengths. Numbers speak to a difficult outing Statistically, his performance showed lack of impact. His only notable involvement came in the build-up to a disallowed goal for Martin Zubimendi, where he was flagged offside. A late effort on goal, comfortably handled by Rui Silva, summed up an underwhelming night for the forward, who was unable to replicate his usual clinical edge that led Arsenal to invest heavily in his signing. Substitutes changed the game With Gyokeres struggling to influence play, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta turned to his bench for inspiration. The introduction of Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz proved decisive. Havertz eventually delivered the breakthrough with a stoppage-time winner, sealing a narrow advantage for the Premier League side ahead of the second leg in London.](https://www.gistreel.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/InShot_20260408_124324008-220x124.jpg)
“I’ve been on good terms with De Zerbi since I was a footballer and he was at the beginning of his coaching career.
“We used to chat after matches and I admired his playing style at Palermo and Benevento.
“He has brilliant ideas, he is a different coach. He also has excellent players they’ve signed many good footballers, so I expect a difficult game,” De Rossi said during a recent press conference.
However, while he emphasized the need for Roma to respect Brighton, he also expressed confidence in his team’s ability to compete with the emerging English side.
The game between Roma and Brighton is schedules for Thursday, March 7, at the Stadio Olimpico, by 6:45pm.