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      Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi says some of his best ideas come in his sleep – and how being a fan first gave him his fire

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      EVERYONE agrees Roberto De Zerbi’s FA Cup semi-finalists are playing dreamy football right now.But that is quite literally the case, with the Brighton boss revealing some of his best tactical ideas have come to him in his sleep.
      Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton have wowed the Premier League this seasonCredit: PA
      The Beautiful Game obsessive has transformed Albion into one of the easiest-on-the-eye teams in the Premier League with his inventive instructions.
      They have caught plenty of bigger sides napping with their approach, defeating Chelsea and Liverpool both twice this season, and are the bookies’ favourites to beat Manchester United at Wembley on Sunday.
      The former Shakhtar and Sassuolo boss said: “The best ideas come exactly then, (in your dreams).
      “Three or four years ago it happened that during the night I was waking up and writing down my ideas.
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      “At Sassuolo, in the first season, I slept with a notepad and pen by my bed.”
      Danny Welbeck explained on Saturday how creative De Zerbi drums three different tactical approaches into his side for every team they face – and the same will be for United.
      While each squad-member, regardless of position or even if they are not playing, must know to a T what every other team-mate’s options should be when they are in possession.
      One particular tactical quirk De Zerbi has brought in is wanting his players to control the ball with the sole of their foot to attract more pressure from opponents.
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      While Pep Guardiola has already lauded the Italian for “changing many things in English football”.
      De Zerbi’s passion for the game has been obvious since he succeeded Graham Potter in September.
      He has sometimes pushed it a bit too far on the touchline, copping two red cards and four yellows for his fiery antics.
      Asked where all that passion comes from, the AC Milan academy product explained: “My dad [Alfredo], he transferred the passion of football when I was a child. 
      Toughened up by hard stint in SicilyROBERTO DE ZERBI learnt from his nightmare spell as Palermo boss when deciding to take charge of Brighton.
      It is hard to imagine given how well his Albion spell has gone, but De Zerbi was taught a harsh lesson in Sicily during the early stages of his managerial career.
      He lasted just 13 matches with Serie A side Palermo, winning only one and losing eight in a row before he was sacked following a Coppa Italia penalty-shootout defeat to Spezia.
      De Zerbi looks back now and realises the environment was all wrong for him at the Rosaneri, where the team were nowhere near as good as the owner believed them to be.
      The Italian explained: “In Palermo, the owner thought we had a big team with big players but it wasn’t true.
      “Now at Brighton I look at my players, (Lewis) Dunk, (Pascal) Gross, (Danny) Welbeck, (Pervis) Estupinan, (Adam) Webster, (Levi) Colwill, (Kaoru) Mitoma, (Solly) March, I feel good and I believe we can win. I trust my players.
      “In Palermo, the squad wasn’t able to compete with De Zerbi and the other coaches.
      “I was 37 when I went to Palermo, 37 to work in Serie A after two years in the equivalent of League One. I didn’t analyse well the situation.
      “I thought, ‘Roberto, you have to go because it’s Serie A, you have to prove, to compete, to understand if you are able or not’.
      “But if there aren’t the conditions… and I have to answer no.
      “It helped me when I came to England. That experience was very important for me because I understood, and I decided not just for the prestige, to put your backside on an important bench.
      “I want to sit where there are the right conditions for me to work.”
      De Zerbi used that experience when he came to Brighton and explained to owner Tony Bloom during his interview that he would not be a replica of Graham Potter, who had left the club for Chelsea.
      He added: “I respect a lot Potter but I am not Potter, and the first thing I spoke with Tony Bloom about was I wanted to understand if he wanted another Potter or Roberto, because I am not Potter, I can’t be Potter. 
      “I can be Roberto and I can do what I know, what I believe, what is my idea.”

      “First of all I’ve been a fan, fans in Italy are ultras, no? Then I’ve been a ballboy, then a youth player, then player and then coach. But myself, in football, started as a fan and I can’t forget when I’ve been a fan.
      “The first thing I want to respect is the people who pay for their ticket, for their season ticket, when the fans go away to watch a game, it should be an honour for the players, for the coaches.”
      De Zerbi clearly takes his responsibility to the crowd seriously, as he spends nearly all day obsessing over football.
      With his wife and son still in Italy – though his daughter is studying in England – he spends most evenings with his staff, eating together and watching matches.
      Doing something else to take his mind off the pressures of top-level coaching is of no interest.
      The 43-year-old explained: “I’ve not understood how I could relax yet in my life but I feel good. 
      “I don’t know for how many years I can work in football but it’s OK, I can work like this in football. I don’t love playing golf, or other sports, to relax. I don’t need that.”
      De Zerbi’s attention to detail was clear by the way he spent two 18-hour days studying Brighton before his interview for the job.
      He also spent time with inspirational figures Guardiola when the Spaniard was at Bayern Munich and Marcelo Bielsa during the Argentine legend’s time at Lille.
      The Brescia-born chief has never had a chance to meet Sir Alex Ferguson but if the opportunity should arise, he would have one question for the legendary United boss.
      De Zerbi explained: “I would like to understand how he could stay with the same team for so long. This is incredible. 
      “It’s not easy because you can burn your brain every day working like that!
      “I loved his Man Utd of Yorke and Cole.
      “It was a team which transferred patience, ideas, qualities and blood.”

      All those attributes have been on display for De Zerbi’s Brighton this season – and could well be the undoing of Erik ten Hag’s United on Sunday.
      No wonder Seagulls fans are dreaming big given the visionary man they have in the dugout. More

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      in Soccer

      Erling Haaland’s strict sleeping technique revealed, from special glasses, hi-tech ring and Champions League alarm

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      ERLING HAALAND’S five goals against RB Leipzig on Tuesday night took his tally to a startling 39 for the season – and we’re only in March.The Norwegian, 22, shared a picture on Wednesday morning of him sleeping alongside his match ball.
      Erling Haaland took a nap with his match ball and tinted sunglasses on Wednesday
      He is known to take sleep extremely seriously
      The Aura Ring is a sleep device that Haaland is known to use
      And his resting regime is just another addition to his set-up that makes him one of the most formidable strikers in world football.
      According to The Mail, Haaland is obsessed with how he can improve his sleep, labelling it “perhaps the most important thing in life”.
      But in order to secure the optimum shuteye, he has several things in place to help.
      They include his orange-tinted, blue-light glasses – visible in his photo from earlier this week – which he wears in the hours before going to bed.
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      He goes to sleep between 10pm and 10.30pm and turns all electric devices off a while before getting his rest.
      Haaland also uses an Oura Ring – which measures sleep quality, temperature trends, stress and heart rate.

      The ex-Borussia Dortmund man scores impressively when using the device – something former Manchester United man Gary Neville also uses for health reasons ever since collapsing at the Euros.
      Hilariously, Haaland also has the Champions League theme music as his morning alarm.
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      Erling Haaland has 10 goals in the Champions League this season
      Haaland has 28 goals in the Premier League
      He has spoken on several occasions about how much Europe’s premier competition means to him – evident through his record of 33 goals in 25 games.
      Haaland is understood to be meticulous when it comes to perfecting his physical condition.
      Norway coach Stale Solbakken recently said: “His body is still improving, he is still growing.
      “If you look at him now and 12 months ago, you can see a small difference. He takes this very seriously.”
      He has bulked up significantly since his younger days at Molde – becoming a huge, commanding presence that is difficult for defenders to outmuscle.
      And his diet has also gone some way to helping him formulate the best recipe for success.
      Haaland can consume up to 6,000 calories per day, with Norway team-mate Josh King saying: “I’ve never seen anyone eat as much as he does. He just eats like a bear.”
      This can be attributed to him growing up in the farming town of Bryne where a high-protein diet is the norm.
      Haaland has bulked up significantly since his days playing in NorwayCredit: Getty
      Unique things on the menu include mineral-rich offal as well as heart and liver.
      Speaking about what he eats, Haaland said: “Eating quality food that is as local as possible is the most important.
      “People say meat is bad for you but which? The meat you get at McDonald’s, or the local cow eating grass right there?”
      He balances his diet with carbohydrates such as his dad’s lasagne.
      Haaland is also a lover of fish and fancies himself as a chef having left home to join Molde at 16 years of age.
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      His sleep and nutrition measures have clearly gone some way to helping him succeed at the very top level.
      And he shows no signs of slowing down having already racked up 215 goals for club and country in his relatively short career to date. More