Baraja: "We have to remember what we have been doing well and be self-critical in order to grow as a team"

Following the defeat against Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano, Valencia CF coach Rubén Baraja gave a press conference in which he reflected on the game.

The game
I'm upset today, especially because this is also an important day for the club and the fans. I'm sad. Facing these games is a challenge but I would have liked us to have competed in a different way; you have to be self-critical. We needed to be more of a team. When we were able to get into the game, the referee's decisions hindered us, and the second goal did a lot of damage because it broke us down. We have to admit that Atletico were the better side, but you have to be self-critical. I expected to see another kind of spirit and I leave here unhappy. It is a reality that we are in this situation and it is no coincidence. If we don't compete as a team, we will find it much harder to get out of the situation.

Ilaix Moriba
There is nothing strange about Ilaix. We try to make sure that all the players can contribute for us. I try to get them performing. Whether the team were too relaxed...No. The team didn't relax; the situation is so difficult that you cannot relax at any time. We have won both home games and lost away games, and today there was a different feeling. We didn't find the way into the game and we lost virtues that we had shown before such as solidity, pressing, winning second balls, intensity etc. They were better than us in all those things.
 
Assessing his five games in charge so far
We have to think that we came here with the ambition of having a good match. It didn't go well and we have to improve. We are in the fight, we know what the way is because we have experienced it and we must not stray from it. We have to realise that if we don't do that, any team can beat you, but if we do, then we can compete with anyone. We are going to have to take all these experiences into games of great intensity and importance with rivals who have a lot at stake, just like us.

Mistakes in defence
It is a matter of understanding the game. They hit us between the lines and difficult situations were generated. The defensive line had to be closer together. There was a moment when the team started to do things better but I didn't like the start of the second half at all, not only because of the goal. We didn't come out with the necessary concentration and that second goal did us a lot of damage. The team tried in the final stages but it wasn't to be. I leave upset but with the feeling that we have seen things that give us good information on what we have to improve to compete. If you do things wrong and make a mistake, you make it too easy for your opponents.

VAR
It's the usual thing. For me there is no intention, he doesn't look at the player and the possible foul occurred. In the following action we made it 1-1. From there we can no longer assess anything else, because it is a refereeing decision. We are not having luck in these actions but we can't give it any more analysis. It seems involuntary to me, it doesn't seem like it was on purpose to cut out the move. In the moment the referee's decision was to play on. 
 
The team's attacking play
We try to ensure that when players come back from injury they don't have a relapse. The score was 2-0 and we had hoped for Cavani to have minutes, but he lacks match fitness. The break will be good for him to gain that physical improvement. The good thing about today is that we have recovered players who were injured. His case is positive.