Gattuso: “Mestalla is an important factor for us”

Gennaro Gattuso gave his review of a 3-0 win at Mestalla against Celta Vigo in his post-game press conference

Diakhaby kept Aspas quiet. How did you rate his performance?

It wasn’t just the centre back. It was the entire team. We played to press, but they always looked for the long ball and we had to run a lot. It was a very difficult match. Celta pressed very well for the first 25 minutes and we misplaced a lot of passes. All of our lines worked very well and there was only the one set piece from which Giorgi made a great save, and I don't remember any more chances for Celta. I congratulate the team and I hope we can score points away from Mestalla as well.

The team took a resounding victory but the referee was a protagonist. What do you think about that?

I'm not talking about the referee, whether he thought that it was not a penalty, if he thought that there were 25 fouls… I respect his way of refereeing. I don't like to talk about the referee.

What did you think of Cavani's debut?

When a 35-year-old player thinks football is a priority for him, training is a priority for him. When a coach has a player with this mentality, he can only be calm and happy. Edinson has all this. He has to improve his fitness, which is normal. I am very happy with how he has worked over these two weeks. He has a great mentality and is very important to us.

What importance does Mestalla have in you winning 3 of 4 games here?

I give it a lot of importance. It is a factor for us. In moments of difficulty they are with us. They always support us and this is important. We've only played two games away from home, but now we have to improve away as well. Now we are winning at home, but we have to improve away.

When a player comes in on loan, you can doubt if the player is committed. But the first six games for Lino have been good, right?

I look for players who have a style that can work for me, but it's not my money. I like working with Lino, but I would like to work with players who are owned by Valencia CF. Now I’m not thinking about if we have to change several players at the end of the season. Now we enjoy them.

You are going to Singapore. What are you going to tell Peter Lim?

I’m going to listen. I am going to talk about what I have seen in these two months, about what is good and bad. And then I'm going to listen to what the owner says. I have two days of travel. I don't like it but I have to go.

Is the trip at Lim's request?

The owner wants to talk to me and I have to go there with respect and humility.

Are you going to talk with Lim about the need to complete contract renewals?

It is easy. The club knows it. We have been talking about this problem for two months. The club know that there are players who are out of contract.

You talked about the first 25 minutes from Celta. There was a moment that reminded us of the match against Rayo. Can you explain how the team were able to overcome that pressure?

We have changed. After failing with several passes, we changed the buildup. Yesterday we prepared for Celta to come here with ultra-offensive pressing. After failing simple passes, we found the fix. The first goal was from a long ball. If we had a 3 against 3, Celta always played 4 against 3. When we work hard, we have the plan. We don't always have to set the longest passing record in the history of Spanish football.

Was Cömert subbed off because he had a problem? What did he like the least about his team?

In the first half I did not like the way we built from the back. We didn’t do that very well. Other than that, I liked the team. We won a lot of second and third balls. We knew it was a tough game. They had lots of chances. I liked the mentality of not spreading out. separate. Cömert was given a rest, that’s all.

What is your opinion on the signings being so integrated?

When you have a good dressing room and a good working attitude, it's easy. All the players who have come here have told me about the dressing room and that they work very well. They respect the rules because if they don't, they have to pay a lot of money. It's an amazing dressing room. We have lost a great person in Jaume, who gives a lot to the team, but we have many players who have been here for a long time. I think that's our secret.

Why did you decide to put Cavani in the starting lineup? How did you think he did?

I think he played well. He has worked for three days with us, very well. To get in good shape, he has to play. I spoke with him. He didn't like the idea very much, but I convinced him and he played the first few minutes. I have to thank Marcos André and Hugo Duro. They are not training regularly due to discomfort. But I can only thank them because they do what it takes to train.

With today's game, nine players have scored the ten goals.

If the data says this, I hope to continue like this. My teams always score goals through different players.