Baraja: “The final stage has not been in line with what we have deserved during the campaign”

Valencia CF coach Rubén Baraja spoke to the press after his side’s loss at home to Girona CF on LaLiga Matchday 37.  

Strange day

It's been a strange day. We had been up there all season with our fans behind us. I think they have been very important during the season. Today everything felt a little weak because of the match and the result. For me, it is a day to forget for many things, and we have to accept it. We are also here in the bad days.

Keeping focused on the game, rather than on protests

It's a question that I don't have to answer. It is the club that must answer that question. I dedicate myself to coaching. Here we can analyse what you want about the game and the match, and you can give your opinion. The situation is what it is. There are things that I can't control.

Gayà’s injury

The issue with José is that he came into this one having played minutes in San Sebastián, we spoke with him and he told us that he felt good. He must have felt something in this game. The last half hour of the game was still a moment in which, if we had had the finishing to make it 1-2, it could have been open and competitive until the end. He must have felt something, but until we have the doctor's diagnosis we cannot assess it. He told us that he was not feeling good and we modified things again, putting Peter in that position.

Converting chances

We had the hope of making that last effort at home count, after a season in which the final stage has not been in line with what we have deserved during the campaign as a whole, and we have to accept it. It is true that we must not ignore that today we had a great side like Girona in front of us, with a great ability to generate chances, and we saw that. In the first half they had two or three good chances and scored, and we had a couple of them and didn't score. The difference in the first half was their finishing. Then, in the second half, when we took a step forward, we went to look for the game, the team gave everything they had, but the finishing is what decided the result. When they had one and a half chances in the second half -because the other was an action in which Yarek put it in- they scored a goal. And we had three or four, we were not able to score until the penalty. Solidity in the areas affected the result. It makes me sad that we have not managed to maintain the enthusiasm that we had generated during the season, when nobody had gifted us anything, with a lot of effort. I would have liked a different ending, but that’s football. Sometimes, these things help you put things in context and evaluate the team's season. When you play against high-level teams, if you make one mistake and they take their chance, it is very difficult.

A bitter taste

I leave here with a feeling of sadness at not having sent that message to the fans about what we have been doing during the season, about the team we have been building, by achieving a good result. Sometimes, you don't get a good result, but you do have that feeling that the team almost always transmit things, transmit energy and stood up to be counted in the general context of the season. I feel bad that the evaluation is based on these last games and not on the overall campaign, but we are here so that you can see me here on the days that go badly. You are going to see me more then than on the days that go well.

Lack of finishing

There’s not one single reason for this. You have to analyse everything. There is time to analyse the season, but it is true that the opposing teams we have faced lately are all from the top of the table. Logically, they are strong teams in terms of their play, their attacking, and making the most of their dominance. Today, Girona had several chances in the first half, they took the lead and it is difficult to compete against a team with that quality and speed. We tried to recover and when we had the game in a position to make it 1-1, we didn’t equalise because the ball hit the post. We didn’t get into the game when we should have been able to, but it wasn’t a case of us not trying. It is one of those days in which we generated the most chances, but finishing is the difference-maker in football and we are not having it in this final stretch. If you remember other games, they were similar. We try, we go forward, we push and we give everything we have. Effectiveness is the difference when it comes to being able to get points in this type of matches.

A great season for Girona FC

Without a doubt, Girona must be congratulated. They have earned many points. You have to have very good games. They are a team with a very clear idea of the way they play and they have carried it out with good results. Let them enjoy the moment.