Gattuso: "I’m happy because I see grit and hunger in this team”

Gennaro Gattuso gave a pre-match press conference ahead of Valencia CF’s game against Real Sociedad in LaLiga.

You said that you had to revalue the players to define objectives. Do you want to explain more about this?

Maybe I don’t speak Spanish well, but I don't like to play the game some of you like to play. When I say that the club have told me that the objective is not getting into Europe, but to have a style, I wasn’t saying that the objective was to sign young players in order to sell them. I said that we have to have a style and win as many games as possible. The club know the lineup an hour before the match and they have never asked me why anybody isn’t playing. I haven’t been looking at anything, but 10-15 minutes before coming here I was told what's going on. It’s not right that a single word makes it seem like I'm against the club. I am not against the club. I am responsible when the team don’t win, and I am ultimately responsible for what happens here. This is why I don't play that game. I don't like it. I always speak the same way. When I talk about reaching 40 points, it's not because I don't have confidence in my team, but because I have a young team who, if they get 40 points they can then play with more peace of mind. I am delighted with my team, I see fire in them and they show me that in the games, and they train well. The day I don't see that fire, I'll call whoever I have to call and I'll go home. With the mentality that I have, with the character that I have, it is incredible to think that I am trying to revalue young players. I have a lot of respect for you all. The other day I shut down training because three or four of you were watching the session. Who is disrespectful? Me for closing the training session or you for coming to see it when you can't?

How are Nico González, Cavani and Gabriel Paulista doing?

Nico is fine. Cavani is not doing well. He has trained with us twice; he has some discomfort and it would be difficult for him to make the game. Gabriel is fine. We only have the absences of Cavani, Moriba and Diakhaby.

You said that here people always spoke about the negatives. Do you think that the lack of victories might generate discontent?

I'm not talking about the fans, but about you. I think some of you like that things don't go well. If things go well, you talk about reaching Europe. But some of you like confusion. I'm not talking about the fans, who come to the stadium. What happens here is sometimes difficult to explain. Some of you like it when we have problems. But I am confident. The team are training well. I'm happy with the team, with the people who work here, but I don't like losing. When you lose, many say I'm dejected, and that’s normal. I don't like losing, but I think the problem here is that a lot of times you like to attack in the face of difficulty. I am upset because in the press you talk about things that are not true, and when you hear something that is not true… If someone thinks that with my career I am here to revalue young players, my head explodes. No one has asked me to do that. I am happy with my team, with their mentality. We need to improve. I’m happy because the team are alive. We aren’t losing games without showing our mentality. My style is not the best in the world. You can win with other styles, but I am delighted with my team. When I see this grit, that hunger... I push to the fullest with this team. You can’t write something that is not true. You cannot say that at the first sign of difficulty you have to go against the president or the majority shareholder. I am out of that game. If we don't win, I'll go home, because I'm the one who is responsible.

After four games without a win, there are two games left before the World Cup. How important are these two games before the break and the meeting with Peter Lim?

The priority is not the meeting with the majority shareholder, but rather the next two games. Tomorrow we face a team who have been playing together for many years, with an incredible mentality and with history. Real Sociedad players have a sense of belonging. It will be a difficult match. But I don't think about defeat, I think positive. The team have a good head, they are not afraid, and they are not anxious. We have worked on this because the team are alive and we have to keep going.

In the reconstruction you are looking for, could Real Sociedad serve as an example?

I’m sure that they can. When you have a style of play you can't change a lot of players every year. You have to look for continuity. It is normal that there are changes, but not 50% of the players, because then everything goes back to the beginning. Here we only talk about the bad, but I think we have done big things in these four months. There have been many renewals and we have signed players who are performing well. Not everything is bad. When Layhoon is here we are a family, we talk about what we have to improve. You make it seem that we have no rules and everyone goes in their own direction. No, here we all work in one direction.

You said that it will be difficult for Cavani to play. With him on the pitch, the team have only been behind for 20 minutes. Can you learn to play without Cavani?

He is an important player, but I’m sure that we can learn to do it. It's not just Cavani's problem or the striker's problem. It is something for all of us. We have to continue along the same lines as what we did against Barça. In difficulties you play with mentality and heart, and that has been missing in many games.

Could the players be affected by the proximity of the World Cup?

I was always a little scared about it, but I didn't have to think that I could get injured because if you think that, you are almost certain to get injured. They have to work well, sleep well, and that's what I did to prepare myself when a World Cup was coming up. Cavani's problem is his ankle. It has been bothering him for a long time. He is playing with personality. Against Barcelona he was the best player.

On the day of the game against Sevilla you emphasised that you used many players in the middle. Could a similar approach be expected against Real Sociedad?

Tomorrow you will see. They are a team who like to play inside, and they have 5 quality attacking players. They do everything very well and we have to respect them. We have to play our game.

Are you happy with Hugo Duro's performance? Is his lack of minutes for physical reasons?

The truth about Hugo is that he has been suffering from ankle discomfort for some time. He doesn't train at 100%. He has always been available to train but he has discomfort and is not 100% fit. I can only thank him.

This week there was a team dinner. How do you see the team mentally?

The team are alive. It is normal that fear appears when you don't win, but this is a team that works, that listens, that knows that they have to follow the same path. If we continue in this way, the results will come. When you don't win, anxiety can creep in, but I'm happy because this is a team that is hungry and proud.