CORBERÁN: "MESTALLA HELPED US GET THE THREE POINTS"

Valencia CF coach Carlos Corberán talked to the media after his team beat Real Sociedad on LaLiga Matchday 20.

“It was important to get the three points and I was very satisfied with the personality and the sacrifice shown by the players. I won’t say I’m amazed, because I know Mestalla, but the unity throughout the match -and what Mestalla generated in the last few minutes- was magnificent. Thanks to the atmosphere they created, they helped us get the three points.”

“Our objective is to get points and it was important to take all three today. To do so, I saw tremendous personality from the players and commitment and dedication from the start to stoppage time. I have actions that come to mind that showed their effort and I really appreciate when I see the players giving their all on the pitch, because it is key to achieving our objective. Obviously, it is a victory that we want to celebrate with the fans, as they have been key to us achieving it.”

“The changes were due to injuries and I thought that was the way to finish the match well and compete until the end. It was difficult to take any more players off than I did. Obviously, some other players could think about us having more changes, but it would have been unfair to take those who were on the pitch off it. The dedication and commitment did not make me think that any of them deserved to be taken off when the third window for changes was there.”

“When you go in front, it is important to defend well and keep a clean sheet, but a team don't win just because they defend. They win because they have personality, they keep trying and they keep doing what has allowed them to get ahead. That requires courage and personality, and I have seen the team take a big step forward in that. That step is going to be very important for us to continue growing and winning games.”

“It was a question of personality, of the team taking a step forward, committing to getting the result and giving their all on the pitch. I would say that it was a question of tremendous effort until the end of the match. When you analyse the previous matches with the players, the key is that what we extract from them that we are able to materialise on the pitch in the following matches. I have seen the team show that commitment of having learned and knowing that it was very important not to stop fighting until the end. That is what they did and that makes me feel very proud.”

“The key to achieving our goal is to focus on ourselves, and to concentrate on what is down to us. That means how we train every day and how we compete in every match. When we give our all, we receive that back. Today the team gave their all and received extraordinary support from Mestalla. With this unity, the team are close to continuing to take points, and our goal is to take points until we achieve our goal.”

“I really believe in hard work, effort, commitment, dedication, improvement… That is what I believe in the most. Through that, we have managed to take an important step forward today. We have created a connection with the fans that makes winning here very difficult for the opposition. We have to keep taking steps forward. Obviously, Rubén Baraja made history and helped Valencia CF stay in the Primera División, and now it is up to us to take that step and we are fully committed to that.”

“I focus a lot on analysing the opponents we are going to face. If the next opponents are playing that matchday I can keep an eye on them, but generally I don’t like to watch games that have nothing to do with the opponents we are facing. I don’t do it because I like to analyse a lot of games, I like to work on them. I think that even if you have a clear game plan, watching one more game can help you with a detail. Maybe not at the start, but in the 80th minute you get an idea and you can apply it. I spend a lot of time analysing my team individually and collectively. I spend a lot of time analysing the opponents and I spend a lot of time sharing that analysis with my players, because I firmly believe that if we all understand a game it is better for us to play properly.”

“He’s okay. We had these kinds of circumstances during the match, which made us use the substitution windows to resolve situations that were occurring.”

“I really value his dedication. The way Gayà played defensively matches what he is: One of the best left backs in Spanish football. The effort he made to be with the team, the day-to-day work, going to the Ciudad Deportiva on his day off to get treatment… I already said that if he didn’t play the game it would be because it was impossible. You couldn’t do more to play a game. It’s a leadership that infects the rest of the squad. If a player is capable of having that commitment, the rest follow suit. But today it is difficult to single out individuals, because I have seen in everyone a dedication and a commitment that I am very proud of as a coach.”

“We knew that, even if Real Sociedad played a 4-3-3, they could convert it to playing with three at the back, since the positional midfielder gets in between the two centre backs or one of the fullbacks plays closer -normally the right-back-, and the left back gets inside and makes them go to a 3-4-3. In the end, the preparation for the match was important, knowing how to defend and press their line of four or their line of three. As happened in the first half, they created a line of three with three centre backs. Even so, at the restart they put Pacheco at left-back and they started with four in defence. We had a defined plan, taking into account the possibility of them playing with a line of three or a line of four, but it is not usual to see Real Sociedad play with three centre backs. Imanol must have understood that it was the way for the team to be more competitive.”

“We have to keep growing and progressing. I'm going to get the most out of every game we play. I'm not coming to the press conference to tell you that we have to keep growing just for the sake of it. It's the reality of football, what football demands of you. After every game there are always aspects to correct and to insist on. I firmly believe that results are a consequence of what we do on the pitch. Therefore, the better we do things on the pitch, the more chance we have of getting the results. And the more we improve and grow, the more chance we have to get what we want. I like that the team are gaining personality, commitment, dedication and commitment. It will be very important to consolidate and increase that to achieve our objective.”