Roberto De Zerbi, the head coach of Marseille, expressed his great satisfaction after his team's significant victory over Ajax Amsterdam with a score of 4-0, in the second round of the group stage of the UEFA Champions League, confirming that the first half was almost perfect from his players.

De Zerbi said: "Excluding Højbjerg from the starting lineup is always painful for me, as he has had three strong matches, as well as Weah, but all players will have a role throughout the season, and we should not fear involving the entire squad."

Regarding his tactical decisions, he explained: "Until Monday, the game plan was completely different, but when I learned that Weghorst would participate with Ajax, I changed the plan on Tuesday morning. I watched their last match against Breda, and I saw that they finished the match with two forwards playing high and leaving spaces in depth, so I decided that we should be more aggressive."

He added: "I asked player number 6 to drop between the center-backs, and Vermeer should create a three against two situation. I told the players to be patient in pressing because if we lose the ball, we will have opportunities to score, and that’s what happened with Baejshao's second goal and Greenwood's goal."

The Marseille coach continued: "In the first half, we played almost perfectly, and it may have been the most important half since I took over coaching the team. When we can deliver 90 minutes at the same level, like against Paris Saint-Germain, the situation will be different. We won an important match, and now we are thinking about the next encounter against Metz, where I have already started thinking about the lineup we will rely on."