The Covid-19 pandemic has hit Valencia CF hard financially, causing the club to tighten its purse strings and to carefully manage financial risks. It has been a difficult summer for Valencia fan as they’ve seen big names like Dani Parejo, Ferran Torres, Francis Coquelin and Rodrigo Moreno left without any replacements so far. But there […]
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Vicente Esquerdo certainly felt the nerves hit hard when former manager Albert Celades told him to prepare for his debut last November. It was in the dying minutes of a tightly contested derby between Valencia and Villarreal, with the Bats precariously clinging to a one-goal lead. The stadium was boiling and the decibel levels surged […]
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Out on Valencia’s sprawling Ciudad Deportiva de Paterna training facility, over 280 youths are aspiring to be the next Carlos Soler or Jose Gaya. Spread out over 14 football pitches, 5- and 6-year-olds dribble around cones, while the U19s and reserve teams spar in friendly matches. An arduous 3-stage training regime spanning about 15 years, […]
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A big-money signing might get a club through the season, but he might also place it on a downward financial spiral. This is a problem that has afflicted many clubs – just think Leeds United. Yet, there is the perennial problem of clubs breaking the bank in the transfer window while neglecting its youth players. […]
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How quickly fortunes can change within a year. When Valencia played their final home game last season, the atmosphere at the Mestalla was thunderous as fans roared a team fighting furiously for a Champions League place to victory over Alaves.
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So, so close. But not nearly enough. Although Valencia ended a horrid run of three consecutive losses, our hapless away form continues. Even the Europa League seems like a distant dream now.
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There is a famous picture of a bruised and bloodied Salvador Gonzalez Marco that seems like he is emerging from a war zone rather than a football pitch. Flanked by two medical personnel, his white jersey is covered in streaks of blood dripping from his battered face. The defender had broken his nose while attempting […]
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When will these Jekyll-and-Hyde performances from Valencia end? A quality first-half display quickly descended into a nightmare in the second as the team completely capitulated in the last 30 minutes against Real Madrid. Yet again, much of it was our own doing.
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It was just a week to Christmas in 2019 and at a hospital in Valencia, the likes of Goncalo Guedes, Cristiano Piccini and Ferran Torres entered a ward. But football was not on the agenda that day. Instead, their appearances were meant to bring some Christmas cheer to the patients spending the festive season in […]
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When Eliaquim Mangala’s contract ended with Manchester City last year, it was not difficult for the French centre-back to decide where he wanted to play next. He returned south to the Mediterranean coast of Spain – back to Valencia, where he once spent a year on loan. “I was here 3 years ago, and I […]
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