Gracia: "Over 90 minutes we believe that we are capable of beating any team"

Valencia CF's Copa del Rey campaign continues on Wednesday evening, as they take on Sevilla FC at the Sánchez Pizjuan (7pm CET). Before the game, coach Javi Gracia spoke to the media in his pre-match press conference.

Feeling capable of a win in Seville

"I think we will have to have a great game, as we did for a large part of the match against Atletico Madrid. We are playing the tie over a single game, and during the 90 minutes we believe that we are capable of beating any team. We have that excitement and that aim for tomorrow. Despite the difficulty and the circumstances of a short recovery time that doesn't help us, that doesn't diminish our chances in tomorrow's game."

Convinced of improvement

"My intention is to keep working and improving along with the team in every game, and to make the team improve. The most important thing is to look at yourself. The best thing we can do is be focused on our work and try to improve our day to day, with the idea that we are the ones who have to improve this situation. If new additions come in, then they are welcome. Meanwhile, we continue with our own business and are convinced that we can do things well."

The importance of the Copa del Rey

"The Copa del Rey isn't an inconvenience for me at all. It's a good opportunity to continue working and improving. I don't know the level that is expected of these players, but their hard work and commitment is at a maximum and every game is an opportunity to try to improve. We were able to compete with the LaLiga leaders, and we will try to do this more consistency against other teams so that they improve their results."

Rotations in the starting XI

"I don't give more importance to any competition over another. All the decisions that have been made in putting together our the lineups have been made looking for the best team possible. We have three good goalkeepers, although one is out injured, and they have to compete, working in every training session. Due to our calendar, every lineup that we field is affected by the previous and the next game. You are trying to find balanced teams that allow you to replace players who are more tired. The importance of Saturday's game doesn't make it an inconvenience for us to compete well tomorrow and continue in the competition. Amidst the rotations, we will look for a balanced team that lets us compete and win.

We are going to do some rotations and let some of our more frequently used players rest, but that is not synonymous with not giving importance to the competition. We have already alternated players and we have done well in the Copa del Rey. I don't see a direct relationship between necessary rotations and prioritising one competition over another. With this frequency of matches we have to be careful when distributing our efforts, as we want to advance in this competition and improve in LaLiga."

Piccini's debut

"Piccini is in the process of checking his fitness with different tests. The first impression is that he is not going to be immediately available. It is going to take him a while, but I would like to see all of the evaluations in order to give an informed opinion. Right now, for the next two games, I don't think he will be available."