Baraja: “The Copa del Rey excites us”
The Valencia CF coach talks about the match against CP Parla Escuela-Fair Play
Marcelino coaches Valencia CF's final game of the season tomorrow, with a chance to win his first silverware at the club. He will be in the dugout at the Benito Villamarín, but before that he gave a pre-match press conference on Friday.
The ideal moment to face Barça?
"It's the ideal moment because it's a final. Barça play a lot of finals, and depending on the moment, Valencia CF play more finals than other teams. We are going to try to beat Barça and provide difficulties for an extraordinary team who won the league comprehensively -something for which I congratulate them. We are excited, motivated and go there with the courage to try to win the final and celebrate it with our fans."
Coach or psychologist?
"Both things go hand in hand. We need to focus on the concepts that we have to apply in the game. We need to reach our top level as individuals and as a group, and then it will be down to our daring, our courage and our decisiveness."
Scoring first
"If we score first, then we will try to score again to have a greater advantage, even if that isn't definitive. We were winning 0-2 at the Camp Nou, and that game ended in a draw. Barça have enormous attacking capabilities and will oblige us to be almost perfect in defence over the 90 minutes."
The game's role in the assessment of the season
"We've reached a first final in 11 years, a first Europa League semifinal in 5 years, and qualified for the Champions League for the second consecutive year. We will try to cap a very successful season with a trophy."
The keys to winning
"This is a game in which we have to defend very well, be good with the ball when attacking and on the counter, and get the ball into the central block as much as possible. Obviously Barça will have more possession, like they do in most of their games, but we know what we've done well in games against FC Barcelona, what we need to adjust and where we've been better than them."
The travelling support
"Almost 25,000 Valencianistas are going to be there. It's a source of pride to represent all of these people, just like it is to have them with us. It's a responsibility that we have, but it's a moment for us all to enjoy together after 11 years. It will be down to us, together, as we unite to make a Valencia CF that get better and better. We will enjoy an extraordinary spectacle, and I hope that the result is one that we all want."
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