Marseille have reached an “agreement in principle” to appoint Roberto de Zerbi as the club’s new manager.

De Zerbi left Brighton at the end of last season after two years with the Premier League club.

The Italian will succeed Jean-Louis Gasset, who retired from football at the end of the campaign.

“The club is currently working with all parties involved to formalise the arrival of the Italian coach and his staff on the OM bench, and to prepare for his arrival in Marseille in the coming days,” read a club statement.

Former Shakhtar Donetsk coach De Zerbi joined the Seagulls in September 2022 on a four-year contract.

He guided the club to sixth in his first season – their highest top-flight finish – and secured European qualification for the first time in their history.

They finished 11th in the league last campaign and reached the last 16 of the Europa League, before it was “mutually agreed” that he would stand down.

Former Montpellier and Bordeaux boss Gasset, 70, succeeded Gennaro Gattuso on an interim basis in February and led the club to an eighth-place finish in Ligue 1, their lowest league placing since 2016.