Celades: "We need a near-perfect game to overcome Ajax"

Speaking on Tuesday evening before the final pre-Champions League training session, Valencia CF coach Albert Celades looked ahead to Wednesday night's game against AFC Ajax.

Mestalla
"There will be a great atmosphere. I've been saying since I arrived how important the support of the fans is. The players deserve all the respect in the world for what they have done recently, and they have earned the affection of the fans. At as tough a ground as Mestalla, the fans help the home team and create a difficult atmosphere for the opposition."

Keys to the game
"We understand that we are going to need a near-perfect game to overcome Ajax, because of the difficulty they present. In terms of performance, our internal analysis of our performances goes beyond results. Of course we want to win every game, and there have been games that we haven't won, but not everything has been negative. We understand that there have been good things in our play when we've lost, just like not everything has been positive when we've won."

The Cruyff style
"I grew up at FC Barcelona under Johan Cruyff's methodology, and then I also played under Louis Van Gaal -another side that had a big influence from Dutch football. Ajax are a magnificent side; last season they came close to reaching the Champions League final, they won the Eredivisie and they won the cup. They've kept the same block, despite the departures of some of their players, and made very good signings. They have the same coach and have maintained their style. They are going to demand the utmost from us."

A win to move closer to the knockout stages
"It would take us closer, but that's making assumptions. I'll talk about what the situation is after the game, which is when the points are on the board. We are focused on what we can control, and then we'll talk about the maths."

Carrying on from Bilbao
"I don't know if that would be enough. We are playing against a very good team, who are used to playing in the elite, but we are calm and preparing in the best way possible. We have our final training session now, and we are going to finish working on a few things and see what shape the players are in. Then we're going to plan things as we feel is best to achieve our objective tomorrow."

Keeping the ball instead of countering
"My idea of football is to adapt to the players that we have, and try to get the best performance out of them. There are different ways that we can play, but the main thing when we join a club soon after the season starts is adapt to the situation and to the players."