Brazilian would want to join Brighton rather than Brentford – both clubs are interested in signing him.
It’s no secret that Santos attacker Marcos Leonardo has been a target for a number of Premier League clubs, as several rumors have circulated in recent months.
Today, we learn that Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion are two clubs who have recently moved to sign him.
This is according to Premier League Brasil, which also provides some specifics on how those negotiations took place.
People close to Marcos Leonardo first ‘confirmed’ that Brighton wanted additional information on the player. However, the interactions were not recent, and he is not the Seagulls’ first choice, as they ended up closing the arrival of Joo Pedro from Watford.
PL Brasil also had it ‘confirmed’ that Brentford have moved for the 20-year-old ‘more than once’, but the talks did not advance.
It’s also claimed that Marcos Leonardo’s staff believe the Bees wouldn’t be as good an option as Brighton.
The Seagulls are seen as more attractive because of Roberto De Zerbi, as well as the large number of South Americans who’ve been there lately, and also for their spot in European competition.
Santos worked hard to hold Marcos Leonardo in the summer, but he’s now expected to go, and we shall see if those clubs move for him again.
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Brighton sent Chelsea warning ahead of Carabao Cup clash as Roberto De Zerbi point made
Former Brighton & Hove Albion manager Gus Poyet has warned the Seagulls about the danger of underestimating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening.
The two sides lock horns in west London in the third round of the Carabao Cup, with Brighton the favourites for the clash thanks to their impressive Premier League form that saw them finish six places above the Blues in the table last season.
Their domestic fortunes have continued to contrast in the early stages of the new campaign too, with Albion sitting third after six matches while Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea are 14th with just a single victory to their name against Luton Town.
Recent competitive meetings between the two teams have gone the way of the Seagulls, with Roberto De Zerbi overseeing a 4-1 win over Graham Potter’s Chelsea at the Amex Stadium last October before becoming the first Brighton manager to win at Stamford Bridge when Danny Welbeck and Julio Enciso scored in a 2-1 win there back in April.
But Poyet, who managed Albion between 2009-2013 and made more than 100 appearances for Chelsea during his playing career, says Premier League form doesn’t matter in the cup fixtures and that this should make Brighton wary of what the Blues could spring on them on Wednesday night.
“Brighton may be favourites for the Chelsea game on paper given both teams’ start to the season, but it’s a cup game so form can go out of the window,” he told safebettingsites.com.
“With cup games, if you lose there’s nothing afterwards, so teams approach things differently than in the league. That kind of urgency could give Chelsea that opportunity of bringing back some confidence, happiness and form ahead of returning to the league on the weekend. It’s a good chance for Chelsea to get a win and really change the mood of the training ground for Mauricio Pochettino, so Brighton need to be careful.”
Thankfully for Albion, they have a manager who, according to Poyet, is one of the best coaches in world football in Roberto De Zerbi. The Italian helped Brighton qualify for European football this season for the first time in the club’s history and he is now keeping performances at high across four competitions while rotating his starting XI consistently.
De Zerbi has used 23 different players in the Premier League already this season, only one fewer than Manchester United and Sheffield United who lead the way with 24 each. In just Brighton’s last three fixtures against Bournemouth, AEK Athens and Man United, there have been 22 changes to the starting XI.
Poyet continued, “Roberto De Zerbi’s managerial abilities have no ceiling outside of what he can achieve for himself.” Apart from the game against AEK Athens, Brighton have been able to continuously perform at a strong level under him, which is a very tough thing to do, even when he’s been changing players like he has this season.
The Brighton team, led by De Zerbi, is one of the few in the world today that can replace five players and continue to compete at a high level. We frequently state that your starting XI is your greatest team, but if you can replace half of that lineup and still perform admirably, you have something really potent.
If Roberto De Zerbi can continue to maintain that level of performance with so many changes, we’re talking about someone that is a top, top-level coach. It’ll be great to see if he can keep this up over the coming months. “That’s what’s been happening this season with Brighton – they’re combining cups, Europe, and the league. The team that plays against Manchester United is totally different from the team that plays in Europe four days later and then again the next weekend.
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