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Former Marseille star Maxime Lopez believes Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto De Zerbi wears his heart on his sleeve too often, but insisted the Italian was not to blame for his disappointing end at Marseille.
De Zerbi was appointed by Marseille in 2024 and guided the club to a second-place finish in Ligue 1 in his debut campaign, sealing a return to Champions League football in the process.
However, this season, the Italian manager left the club by mutual consent in February, and in his absence, Marseille have also missed out on Champions League qualification.
The 46-year-old head coach joined Tottenham in a bid to secure their top-flight status, but a former Spurs star claimed the club have lacked creativity and energy under the new boss.
Lopez, who played under De Zerbi at Italian club Sassuolo, opened up about the personality of his former boss and how it impacted his managerial stint at Marseille.
The 28-year-old midfielder is also an academy graduate of Marseille and revealed that De Zerbi’s way of communication can only work once and not ten times.
He also stressed that the French side could have done much better and that their difficult season was not solely down to De Zerbi.
Lopez said on the Winamax FC show: “Knowing him personally, I know he took things too much to heart.
“In Marseille, that kind of message works once, but not ten times.
“They could have done much better, but it’s not all down to De Zerbi.”
De Zerbi’s sudden departure from Marseille deeply hurt defender Facundo Medina, despite suggestions that the dressing room was not entirely harmonious under the Italian manager.
The former Marseille boss requires a point or more on the final day of the season to secure Spurs’ top-flight status, an achievement that could earn him hero status, according to a former Lilywhites manager.
Tottenham have endured the second-worst home record in the league, collecting just 12 points at N17, and will hope to finally make home advantage count against Everton on Sunday at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to secure their safety.
With De Zerbi set to stay on next season whatever happens, his methods will be thoroughly tested at Tottenham, who proved this season with the exits of Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor they are not opposed to quick managerial changes when results and performances go south.