Leandro Trossard has hinted that he would consider a future move away from Brighton, but insists he is keen to build on a promising start under Roberto De Zerbi.
The Belgian has again been linked with several of Europe’s top clubs after a fine hat-trick earned Brighton a point against Liverpool in weekend Premier League action.
The 27-year-old’s burgeoning reputation was further enhanced by a star turn, with Chelsea, now under the management of Graham Potter, among those reported to be considering a move for the forward.
Trossard, though, is content on the South Coast and keen to build on an encouraging start under De Zerbi.
“It’s difficult to say anything about that now, it completely depends on which club would come,” Trossard told BBC Radio Five Live about transfer speculation.
“If I feel good and things are good on a private level… but I also know how good I am at Brighton, also with new coach Roberto De Zerbi it looks promising.
“I’m a little higher up the pitch now, which gives me more chances to score a goal. And the more chances you get, the more you can score. I think that’s the biggest difference from the last few years.”
Trossard scored eight times in the league last season, his best tally since joining Brighton in 2019, but already has five goals in the opening two months of this campaign.
It is a period that has brought significant change at the Amex Stadium, with Potter departing for Chelsea just a handful of games into the season.
Former Shakhtar Donetsk manager De Zerbi was installed as Potter’s replacement, and Trossard has been impressed by his new manager so far.
“After Graham left it was a bit weird. Obviously it happened quite quickly - one day we heard the news that he was up there and on the same day, or maybe the day after, it was confirmed,” Trossard explained.
“We had a good period under him and developed well as a team. We didn’t know what was coming up in the next months with the new manager, but we can see how he wants to play already, and the last week he has been training a lot on the practical stuff.
“[De Zerbi] wants us to play out a lot from the back in a special way. I think we have some exciting times coming up with him.
“He loves to play in the rondos with us. He’s quite good, to be fair.
“He is much more present, I would say; he is more active, in a certain way I can’t really explain.
“He is always there shouting - not in a bad way, but you just notice his presence all the time. He is so passionate about football and trying to get to know us and help us on the pitch.”
Brighton host Tottenham on Saturday evening in the Italian’s second game in charge.
