A cut lip late on in the win over Deportivo Alavés was not enough to dampen the spirits of Gabriel Paulista, who was complimentary of the display by Valencia CF in the 3-0 win at Mestalla.

A great victory

I am very happy with this great victory. It is a very good start to the season. I am very happy, and the group is happy. Every day we are growing. We are gaining experience in every detail and today was no different. We had a very good game and that is the way to go, all together, with each player doing their job. We have to continue to get better every day. I am happy for the fans as well, because they are something that we needed a lot. We had a very difficult year without them and now everything is different with them. Our feeling at Mestalla is different.

Support from the fans

We know that we are very, very strong at Mestalla. Last year, without the fans, we achieved a lot of positive results at home. We got good results at home. This year we have started well -and now with the fans it is better. The coach has told us that it has always been very difficult to come to Mestalla, because the fans helped us a little more. Now, every game, every training session, we have to get better.

Hard work

We had a very tough preseason. Many players were not used to such pressure from a coach like Bordalás, but all the players have understood his way of working. Now we have to continue growing to be the Valencia CF that everyone expects. Valencia CF are a very big club. We cannot have Valencia CF at the bottom; the club always has to be at the top. It requires positive thinking and big team thinking.

His split lip

They are things that happen in games, and things that happen to Paulista. These things always happen to me, but I've had worse. Nothing like this can take me out of a game, because the team needs me. I know that I am an important player for the dressing room and I want to continue being important and being a true captain, which is what this club deserves.