Duro: "It's a tough time and we have to take a step forward"

Following the final whistle at Mestalla, Hugo Duro gave his assessment of a performance against Real Madrid that ultimately ended in defeat..  

Fatigue

We definitely felt the fatigue towards the end, because of the Copa del Rey game in midweek, but that's no excuse. We were hoping for a good result, we fought hard, but one individual move killed us and forced us to attack more -and with open spaces, Real Madrid can punish you.

Taking a step forward

It's difficult to ask for more support from the fans when we've had two consecutive record-attendances. It's a tough time, and we need to step up. We have to stick together and fight. It's the same message as always, but there's no other way, and I'm sure we'll pull through.

The derby

We lost today, but we have to pick ourselves back up; there are still many games to play. Valencia CF need to hold our heads high and fight in every match as if it were the last, and we're going there for the derby with the motivation to win.