Corberán: “It was a triumph built on effort, resilience and faith”

Valencia CF coach, Carlos Corberán, spoke to the media in a press conference after the 1-2 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu.

The win

“I’m happy with the result. I’m also very satisfied with the work done by the team. They competed with the necessary personality and mental strength to overcome any setback. They demonstrated effort and faith. These are three very important points.”

The match

“It was an exercise in great effort and resilience. You have to do everything perfectly, but in the moments where Real Madrid outplayed us, we had Giorgi Mamardashvili, who was one of the key players in the game. The more we attacked, the closer we got to what we wanted.”

The fans

“The greatest satisfaction is for all the Valencia CF fans who have suffered so much. I know what the club is about, and we owed a result like this to the fans. They've shown tremendous support all year, and this goes out to all of them. We wanted to bring them joy, and the team are making a tremendous effort to make the fans proud of Valencia CF. Our job is to make them proud, and hopefully we can achieve more moments like this.”

Key Aspects

“There were four key aspects to winning. We had to have a lot of personality and not be intimidated. Secondly, we had to pay constant attention, as you can't let yourself get distracted for even a second. You also have to show endurance and resilience. Finally, we took advantage of our strengths and ensured that each player was able to demonstrate the level of performance that brought them to Valencia CF.”

An important win

“It's hard for me to look at the magnitude of things. It's the most important victory today, and I give it that importance. There is the satisfaction of seeing the team continue to grow.

Attacking substitutions

“It's a key moment of the season, where we need all the players. They've performed tremendously. If we want to single out names, then all the players who came off the bench helped the team.”

Barrenechea’s substitution

“He was very fatigued. He took a knock to his glute against Mallorca. He has a very strong character and personality, and he gave his all on the pitch. That's the mentality we have to have.”

The standings

“I don't look at the points with Europe or the rest of the league in mind. I look at the points we have. The standings fluctuate. What matters to me are the points we get. We still have work to do.” 

Mental and emotional work

“In football, you can't separate the emotional from the tactical. It's impossible. Faced with a setback like Real Madrid's goal, at a place where they've made comebacks before, having the mental strength to pick ourselves up, not let our heads drop and keep believing has been extremely important.”

Pride in the team

“It makes me happy to be able to make our club and our fans proud. From the -7 gap, or the 13 points we had, to the 34 that we have now, there's been a lot of hard work and dedication from everyone who works at Valencia CF, and a tireless commitment to achieving this goal.”