Roberto De Zerbi reveals Brighton's turning point that kickstarted Europa League run
Albion lost their first-ever game in Europe in a 3-2 loss to AEK Athens at the Amex back in October and then found themselves 2-0 down against Marseille after 20 minutes in Stade Vélodrome in their next fixture.
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Hide AdThe Seagulls conceded two goals in as many minutes against the French side and it seemed their European dream would end early. However, Brighton looked like a completely different outfit in the second half and earned a 2-2 draw thanks to goals from Pascal Gross and Joao Pedro.
De Zerbi's men won four straight group games after that night and the Italian said that is the moment where his players' mentality changed for the better.
"After the second goal we conceded in Marseille because in the first game against AEK at home I think we deserved to win but we lost. We started the Marseille game losing 2-0 after 20 minutes, playing very badly," he said after his side's 1-0 win over Marseille on Thursday.
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Hide Ad"After that moment we changed everything; our mentality and our confidence. We spoke at half time in the dressing room and in the second half we deserved to get a point. After that game we won four games in a row but with four clean sheets. That is an incredible result."
Brighton's victory at the Amex over Gennaro Gattuso's side ensured they marched into the last 16 of the Europa League as group winners.