Baraja: "The guys have worked very well and the team has an identity. Our goal is always to grow and improve"

Valencia CF coach Rubén Baraja analysed the defeat against Aston Villa in the Trofeo Naranja, and also the current squad and preseason work.

His analysis of the game

Regarding this game, it is not something that we have to draw conclusions from. It is a friendly that helps us to continue accumulating minutes and the result is insignificant.

I have seen very positive things from the team, especially in the first half. Putting the result to one side, we have been intense, we pressed high, we stole the ball and we just lacked a bit of clarity on the counterattack. There was just a specific action in which we made a mistake, making it easier for them to go ahead. The assessment of the first half is positive.

In the second half the game was open and Aston Villa made it 0-2, then with the substitutions and the fatigue it was more difficult. But I'm left with the feeling that the team worked well, the players are understanding what we want and I’ll take away the positive things I've seen today.

The current squad

We have to make a real assessment of the situation, and our reality is harsh. You have to accept that. I have to be a coherent, sincere and honest person and our reality is difficult, despite the fact that I trust the process in the transfer market and the operations that are underway, the work that could still be done to help us bring in players in the positions we need.

It is obvious that the team needs to be strengthened. By August 31st we need to have the best possible team that we can with our economic limitations, and then start LaLiga in the best possible way in these 3-4 games before the transfer window shuts. In this process we make real assessments of this season's objective when we finish putting the squad together on August 31st. I hope there are changes because it is obvious that we have to reinforce the squad.

The objective for the season

There is a reality that everyone needs to know. With the transfer market, we all understand how the situation is. It is not limited to Valencia CF: It is a general theme that not all the teams have prepared their squads fully for the start of LaLiga yet.

We need to strengthen, bring in the players that give us competition for each position and, above all, we need up more up front. That is evident. On the wings, we need players that give us pace and can take on defenders. We are in the process of finding them.

We will be honest, we will assess the situation with the squad as of August 31st, and we will say what the reality is. What we are not going to do while here is let the fans down by saying things that are not coherent, but we have to wait until the squad is ready.

The players have worked very well, the team has an identity, we have been improving and we are working to get things right in those positions that we need to improve more.

Youth in the squad

I am working with the options I have and the players I have. I am happy because the attitude is good and everyone works towards what we are looking for and want. We work within the situation we have at the moment.

It is obvious that we need players and that this will change. You have to have confidence in the work that is being done for this to happen and we have to compete with what we have at the moment. We cannot normalise the fact that, with six days to go before the opening game, we are missing so many pieces of the puzzle, but we must be aware that the transfer window is going to be long and we hope that this will change.

I am a positive person and am optimistic that we are going to be able to do it. As we are at a demanding club and with great demands from our fans, we understand that improvement is going to take place.

Gabriel Paulista

I can't assess what happened with him because I haven't talked to him. Something must have happened to him to make him react like that. At the end of the game we don't usually talk because pulses are racing. Tomorrow we will talk about it and if what he did was not correct, we will assess it.

Positions to improve

We need players on the wings and players up front who give us things that are different from what we now have. We need 5 or 6 players to complement our attack, but the market will decide if 5 or 4 can arrive... I don't manage the economic issues at the club.

You have to understand that with 6 days to go we would have liked to have other possibilities, but we have to accept what we have at the moment. Due to market situations, it has not been possible to improve the positions, but we must trust that it can be done.

The possibility of imminent additions to the squad

We are dealing with operations that are in an advanced stage and all this takes time. In the end, the important thing is the profiles we are looking for. We need to bring in players who have the energy we are looking for, especially in attack -where we have more difficulties.

I am being transparent and sincere, but I also trust that this situation will change. We all know how demanding we are at Valencia CF, and if we want to improve then this has to change.

We cannot make hypotheses about situations that we do not know about. You have to wait for the transfer market situations and our idea is always based on growing and improving. It is our goal. I trust this will happen.

The fans

It's normal for them to be restless, because last year they suffered a lot, like all of us. It is normal that I have the excitement that we can build the best possible squad and that it is a competitive one, which is what we are going to look for in this transfer window. We hope that this happens and that they feel represented by us.

For us they are fundamental and this year they will be so again, because our reality is difficult. We have to ensure that they are key factors from the first minute, because each point, each action, becomes a path to growth, which is what we want.

Fran Pérez and the other young players

Fran is participating, like other players who are offering us things in the preseason. We are happy with them because they have understood their role and what we expect of them: Intensity and consistency.

They are doing well in preseason, beyond today's result, which does not change anything in relation to what we are seeing. We now have this week to prepare well for the start of LaLiga and we have the desire and ambition to have a good game in Seville.

The evaluation of the preseason is positive and the most positive thing is that they are working at a high level. That helps us to be closer to how we want to be.

His debut in the Trofeo Naranja

It wasn't an official game when I played this match for the first time, but it helped me realise what this club is and it was nice to feel it firsthand. This is what has accompanied me for the rest of my life, what you feel when you put on this shirt. I try to transmit that experience to our players, which is essential. You need effort, hard work, to give everything. It is what the fans ask of us and it is what I try to convey to them.

Andre Almeida

He has only had a short preparation time and we needed him to have minutes. Last year he was in that position and he did well, and those who have arrived later don't have the minutes we need. He can play in two positions and we have to optimise resources to be competitive.

Pepelu

He is a player who has the profile that we need when we talk about signing players: Young, hungry, with some experience in professional football, who understands the game, who gives us a boost. His preseason is going well, his adaptation is fast and his profile is what we are looking for in the transfer market: Committed players, with quality and who understands the game, at an age to be able to give their best.