Bordalás: “We are sad, but also proud of the players and our fans”

José Bordalás spoke to the press following the Copa del Rey final defeat to Real Betis on penalties.

How are you feeling after the final?

I am proud of the players. We feel very sorry for the players and for the fans. We wanted to win the cup for them, but it wasn’t to be. That’s football.

Does this defeat aggravate the situation?

They are difficult moments when you lose a final. We are sad, but this is part of football. We are down, but at the same time proud of the players and our fans, who have got behind the team at all times. They have given us strength and the players gave absolutely everything. The team have to pick themselves back up immediately. We have sad players and sad fans, but we have to get back up and look at the present, because now we go back to competing in LaLiga. We have to give everything for our fans, to be as high up the table as possible. It's a shame because the team did everything well.

Whose decision is it as to who takes the penalties? Without European football next year, is it time for you to make a decision?

The decision about the penalties is up to the coach. It is always made by talking to the players. Some are fatigued and for a decisive shot we stick with those who are more confident. We had already talked about it and these were the players who had the most confidence. Yunus missed, but this is part of football.

As for the second question, it's time to lift my spirits up again, but I can't talk about the future. I am the coach and what I have to do is get the players back up. We have to congratulate them because I am very proud of them. We'll see what the future holds. We all wanted to get into Europe. It wasn’t to be and now it's time to keep going.

What message can you give to the fans who are sad today?

I thank them. I cannot apologise, because they will have seen that we gave it everything, every last drop of sweat. We had our chances to win. We didn’t do it, and in finals you don't get a second chance, but you can't blame the team for anything. I thank the fans because they also gave everything. I'm sure they're proud of the team.

Do you think that the early part of the second half was when Valencia CF had the best chance of winning the final?

Yes. We had a great team like Betis in front of us. They were serious opponents. We knew there were going to be alternatives in how they play. They have a great squad, but we had some very good moments at the beginning of the second half; we also had a chance for Soler near the end. The team were really good. I'm proud of all of them. I’m proud of Gabriel. He has gone through an ordeal this season but he has brought his recovery forward for the team. He is a leader, an example who always gives everything. Thanks to them we have played the match we played today.

How did you experience what we saw with the fans?

It was amazing and impressive. The way that they supported us gave us goosebumps. We feel very sorry for them, for the players and for the families. We would have liked to have given them the trophy.