Pablo Longoria reveals behind the scenes of the arrivals of Roberto De Zerbi and Adrien Rabiot at OM. Between passion, transparency and strategy, discover how the Marseille president orchestrated this ambitious transfer window.
OM president Pablo Longoria was confiscated
Corriere della Sera The details of the moves marked the last commercial market: the signing of Roberto De Zerbi as coach and the cell of Adrien Rabiot, who arrived free after his son from Juventus. Longoria highlighted the passion and transparency used to convince these two majors.
Concerning De Zerbi, Longoria says: “A friend whispered to me that de Zerbi was leaving Brighton. There is no home and there is immediate contact with the agent, Edo Crnjar. I presented the project to him with passion and transparency, and Roberto followed his heart. The enthusiasm of Marseille supporters also weighed in his decision. » Recruitment is inspired by a project with three ambitions for OM.
Véronique Rabiot listening
For Rabiot’s transfer, Longoria recognized the crucial role played by Mehdi Benatia, the club’s sports advisor, with the player’s mother and agent, Véronique Rabiot: “Benatia’s work is fantastic. He creates a dialogue with Véronique, who spends two years with her son. She quickly understood our project. »
Despite a reduced salary and the absence of European competition, Rabiot was seduced by the clarity and honesty of the Olympic project. An internal source which is also moving: “Madame Rabiot is great. She understood that we were not a club to make excessive promises. Things were clear from the start. »