The influence of Roberto De Zerbi on England U21s playing style

Roberto De Zerbi is revolutionising English football. A statement which, at first, seems like a wild exaggeration. But then you watch the playing style used by England U21s at this summer’s UEFA European Under 21s Championships and it looks remarkably familiar to anyone who has seen Brighton under De Zerbi. Because it is DeZerbiBall.

Lee Carsley sets his Young Lions up in a 4-2-3-1 formation. They keep the ball across the back line in an attempt to draw the opposition press. They then break up the other end at lightning quick speed to create goal scoring opportunities.

Everyone is in thrall of it. A TikTok from @senezizreview2 highlighting the playing style of England U21s has racked up nearly one million views so far.

“I’ve never seen an England team play like this,” the voiceover on the video starts off by saying. “There is a different composure on the ball to bait the opposition and play the difficult channels.”

“The players problem solve themselves out of trouble. They receive difficult balls but with two touches, they convert it into a counter attack.”

“A big reason for this is the duo of (Angel) Gomes and (Curtis) Jones. The England coach is basically playing two attacking midfielders in a double pivot.”

@senezizreview2 England U21 ball session #fyp #football #footballtactics ♬ original sound – Senezizreview

For Gomes and Jones, see two of Alexis Mac Allister, Moises Caicedo or Pascal Gross at Brighton last season. And in defence, the Albion of De Zerbi and the England U21s of Carsley share a player whose abilities are perfectly suited to this playing style – Levi Colwill.

“England have several players that gets the style now,” the TikTok continues. “We’re constantly seeing Colwill in this position for Brighton, where he wants to bait a press. The mentality with Jones, an attacker, they don’t want to headlessly clear the ball.”

Results for Brighton after the arrival of Roberto De Zerbi speak for themselves. The Albion beat Manchester United, Liverpool (twice), Chelsea (twice), Arsenal (twice) and took a point from Manchester City.

A sixth place finish represents the highest in Brighton history and means the Seagulls will soar into Europa League action in 2023-24 for the first time.

As for England, they have advanced to the final of the European U21s Championships by winning five games out of five, including victories over Portugal and Germany.

They are yet to concede a goal in the tournament whilst plundering 10 at the other end. Spain now stand between England and their first European Championship title since 1984 in the final.

Yes, you read that correctly. Despite all the talent English football has produced, no U21s side has lifted silverware in nearly 40 years.

A decade ago, England lost all three of their group games including a 3-1 defeat to Norway and a 1-0 reversal against Israel.

Since then, Harry Kane, Phil Foden, John Stones and Jack Grealish have all gone to U21s tournaments but still the Young Lions have been unable to break their duck.

To put it simply, England do not win tournaments at U21s level. If adopting DeZerbiBall changes all that, it would be quite the endorsement for De Zerbi.

But even if the Young Lions are beaten by Spain, their playing style at this tournament has the potential to leave a lasting legacy on English football.

The likes of Colwill, Gomes, Jones, Morgan Gibbs-White, Emile Smith-Rowe and Cole Palmer all have the ability to transition into Gareth Southgate’s senior squad.

Palmer’s impressive performances for England U21s playing DeZerbiBall have been of particular interest given he has been linked with a season long loan at Brighton.

Combine those names with young players already in the senior side like Foden, Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka, and England have a frighteningly good team.

One which should certainly capable of competing at Euro 2024 in Germany and then winning the World Cup in 2026 as they head towards the peak of their powers.

Southgate has flown out to Georgia to watch the U21s in action. According to reports, he has been seriously impressed by what he has seen; both in terms of results and playing style.

If adopting DeZerbiBall helps Carsley lead England U21s to glory, it could provide inspiration for a new playing style for Southgate and the senior side.

Already, you can see the way De Zerbi is influencing English football after less than a year in the Premier League.

Pep Guardiola is a bloke who knows a thing or two about changing the way the beautiful game is played. Before Guardiola, everyone thought Tiki Taka was a tapas restaurant in The Lanes.

Once Barcelona and Spain started winning everything, it became the most popular and successful playing style in world football.

Guardiola said of De Zerbi last season: “Pay attention to what I’m going to say. I’m pretty convinced I’m right in what I’m saying, I think Roberto is one of the most influential managers in the last 20 years.”

“There is no team playing the way they play, it’s unique. I have the feeling when he arrived the impact he would have in the Premier League would be great – I didn’t expect them to do it in this short space of time.”

“He creates 20 or 25 chances per game, better by far than most opponents, he monopolises the ball in a way it hasn’t been for a long time.”

“Everybody is involved, the keeper is like a holding midfielder. If you don’t play at a high level he can do whatever he wants against you. They deserve completely the compliments and the success they have. One of the teams I try to learn a lot from.”

Carsley has also learnt a lot, to the point that there are now two teams playing the way Brighton play – the Albion and England U21s.

How long before others follow suit? Brighton truly have a managerial marvel at the helm with the potential to re-write not just Albion history, but the way football is played in England.