Alberto Marí is one of the latest players to renew his contract at Valencia CF, through to 2026. He followed this up with two goals in the preseason game against St. Gallen, and is happy to be getting up to speed this summer ahead of the LaLiga campaign.

The reaction to his renewal

I've received many messages of congratulations, but you have to stay calm. You have to keep training and working to get to a good level. You're always excited to see that your family and your friends are happy, as they are the people who are always there for you in difficult times. They know how hard you work every day, the effort involved, and when it pays off you have to be happy.

Earning his contract extension

Last year we had a good season with VCF Mestalla; even though we fell short of promotion, we all improved a lot. We also had several players promoted to the first team and we did well there, which is the goal of the VCF Academy: To try to provide the first team with as many players as possible.

Promotion to the first team

It is always special to move up to the senior side. When you are in the academy your main objective is to do the best you can so that the opportunity arrives. The coach gave me the chance and I tried to take advantage of it. I think I did quite well and this year I will also try to take advantage of the opportunities that he gives me.

Personal changes

People know more about you, it's true, but I'm a quiet person and not much has changed for me. I keep doing the same routines and on a day-to-day basis things haven't changed.

Baraja
We are very grateful to the coach because it was a difficult time for us when he came in. He was brave for using the young players from the VCF Academy. I think we responded well and we hope this year will continue in the same way. We are very grateful to the coach, who has given us the opportunity to play in the Primera Division -which was my dream since I was little. I will always be grateful for that.

His goalscoring
Last year I scored goals for both VCF Mestalla and the first team, and this year has started well -which helps you to gain confidence, keep working and keep fighting with humility. The important thing is that the team are winning and playing well. For a striker, scoring goals gives you a lot of confidence.
I'm a striker who plays well with my back to goal, tussling with the centre backs, but I also like to move into space and attack the near post. A striker has to get into the area and in the last game the two passes from Javi Guerra and Martín Tejón were also very good for me.