Baraja: “We competed until the end”

Rubén Baraja talked to the media following Valencia CF’s 1-0 defeat away to Villarreal CF in LaLiga on Matchday 29.

His evaluation of the game

"We weren't solid with our clearances or set pieces. With the penalty action we didn't do well, as they make quick transitions. been good, they move quickly. I saw it as an even match, but we must defend better from moves like that from which they made it 1-0. That really bothers me. We need more concentration in a match like this, that is so close. We have to take care with those details. The team competed until the end. In the end we did lose direction and our strategy of going more calmly. Success wasn't on our side, but the team competed. We have to keep going. When you lose, but leave everything out there and give your best, you can deal with it differently."

The team's away form

"If you want to maintain this level of points-scoring, you have to take more points away from home. Today it wasn't to be, but the spirit we showed was that we wanted to compete and we didn't give up. It wasn't to be and we lacked effectiveness. We gave it our best, we competed and today we didn't have that luck we needed. It's always more difficult to take points away from home but today's game gave us the chance. It could perfectly easily have been a draw."

"I think we had a good spirit. We went upfield to press, we went forward, we stole the ball, but we lacked clarity on the final ball. When they got through, the team tracked back... The team worked well but today we didn't have effectiveness. In other games, with fewer chances, we got more. Winning away from home is what shoots you up the table or gives you the difference-maker to be at the top, in the positions where we were. It's about continuing, learning and maintaining this attitude. We have to go for it in the next game and with this attitude we will be able to get points."

Whether it was a fair result or not

"We competed well. Villarreal are a great team in every sense. Because of their starting XI and because of their changes. They are fully immersed in an improvement. We cannot know the future..."

Defensive solidity and the chances for Villarreal

"I don't know about the chances but I didn't see that many. I saw shots because we weren't solid, but I get the feeling that both sides had chances. They were effective and we weren't. I didn't have the feeling that they overwhelmed us and that they generated many chances. They are dangerous with their set pieces and speed, but I didn't have the feeling of being overwhelmed, of them dominating the game and having 8 or 9 clear chances."

Gaya

"He felt a twinge in his quadriceps. We will look at the scans. We will see because he is an important player, who gives us speed and depth on the flank. He identified well where he could attack. It is a shame, as he was in a good dynamic."

Precision

"We stole the ball and we had chances, but sometimes you are more lucid and you have better finishing. The other day Hugo Duro scored the one chance he had, and he didn't today. They scored a goal off a corner and Cenk had a chance from a corner in the six-yard-box that he couldn't convert. That was the difference. The team had attitude and drive, except in the last few minutes when we rushed things."

The decision to take off Canós at halftime

"He felt discomfort in his back. We preferred not to force things, in order to avoid an injury."

The return of Almeida

"André is a player who gives us control of the play and needs the ball. He hasn't competed for a long time and I'm happy for him that he's back. He's going to work to ean his spot. The more players available, the better."

Cenk's progress with Mosquera by his side

"He had a consistent game. He was good in the battles, he was solid with the ball, he didn't make mistakes. It is a question of picking these players, believing in them and giving them confidence. Mosquera and Cenk had a good game."