Valencia needs a win in La Liga

While I'm pleased with the draw with Atletico Madrid and I think that is the fairest result by all measurements I feel like Valencia CF has overall slipped in the domestic league with 4 draws and 1 loss in the last 5 matches. That is basically 11 points lost and considering we drew 3 of these matches in the last minute practically it really increases the pain.

Part of this is probably the Copa Del Rey as Valencia CF has really been focusing on going further and with now Barcelona and previously Levante it probably did have an effect of the overall performance, but since Emery has been rotating the players it shouldn't have affected us so much.

Right now though first things first we need to go and win against Barcelona and no less at the Camp Nou, but the fact that we've drawn with Barcelona twice this season shows that we can compete with them and our bigger squad should theoretically give us a bit of an advantage, although I really doubt how much real the freshness effect is and how really tired players are.

But no matter if we win or loose at Camp Nou we must prioritize the domestic league as top priority and 3rd place is a must, especially after such poor season start from all Valencia CF competitors.

Villarreal, Sevilla, Atletico Bilbao and for much of the start Atletico Madrid have all been poor, with Malaga not really being a direct competitor just as I've actually predicted it won't and said it will finish around 6th and now it seems increasingly likely that way, so the biggest competition we've had is from Levante another Valencia based club, which I guess is good.

But thing is Atletico Madrid are catching up really fast and just as I've predicted again accurately before the season began that Atletico Madrid have a very strong squad, realistically stronger than Valencia squad and if things go their way will be our main competitor and hold and behold with the change of coach that is happening right now.

Surprisingly though even I couldn't predict the disaster that is going to turn out Villarreal and their miserable season, especially since their current squad is practically the same from a season ago minus Cazorla.

So yeah right now the biggest worry I have is Atletico Madrid as I feel can challenge our 3rd place which up until now was pretty safe and even Emery admitted yesterday that after the last draw 3rd place is no longer safe and it will be a challenge to keep it.

What I'm enthusiastic about is the fact that even without Mata and with some big injuries and quite a fewer overall players than last season we are doing as well as last season and this time the Europa League might even turn out to be a blessing in disguise if we can reach the latter stages of it like the semi final or even final and dare I say win.

But on to another topic I want to say that I was right yet again about Parejo and wrote that it would be best for him to leave as he is not combining with the team and the fact that his character is standing in the way is an even bigger reason for him to have left. Now how was I right again? Well that is because first my rating of players is based in fact and statistics and not feel. I agree it has a lot of feel and subjectivity in it, but in all that it has an actual formula of how it works.
 
First off all the players start off with a score of 5 and at the end of the match I calculate with the points they lost or received and that creates the final score in the majority of cases.
For every goal, assist, penalty save and major block or perfect offside trap the player/s in question receive +1 point.
For every positive action in the game, say good through pass creating a chance or distributing the ball precisely in a positive way the player/s gets 0.5 points.
For every negative action like giving the ball few too many times, failed shots or blocks the player/s gets -0.5 points.
For major mistakes like giving/loosing the ball away close to own goal or in very dangerous position or a 5 meter clear goal miss or things of that nature player/s gets -1 points.

So ultimately I end up giving each player from 3-4 points up to 10-12 depending on his involvement.

Example: I give Albelda 4 0.5 points for positive actions and 1 negative 0.5 point so that is basically 2-0.5=1.5. So 5 starting point + 1.5=6.5 final rating.

Now every once and a while I'd increase or decrease the rating based on pure feel about how they played, but it mostly has some science behind it.

Second thing was the team play analysis. Sometimes you can have the best player, yet he not going to play well for example Messi for most of his Argentina performances. You got to see how he fits with other players, which role suits him and does not suit him and just the general feel of the game and how the player is part of it.

The fact that he has done pretty bad in both and coupled with his negative attitude about the situation was enough for me to write him off. And he is not going to improve this season. If we don't sell him next season and he also decides to stay and try and fight for a spot from the ground up and has a really good summer he may become a valuable asset to our team, but that is obviously a long shot.

/End discussion-rant.

Atletico Madrid 0-0 Valencia CF match report

Atletico Madrid 0-0 Valencia CF

Possesion: 48%-52%

Fouls: 22-21

Atletico Madrid and Valencia CF shared the spoils tonight and ended up both getting a point with a goalless draw. The match itself was interesting, although it didn't have many chances on both sides. Most of the play was in midfield and both teams were evenly matched. Both team would have good chances to score with both sides unable to convert their chances into goals.

Atletico Madrid would have the more direct chances including one towards the end and then one went through Rami legs, but deflected to a corner.

With so little chances most of the battle was in the midfield and both teams were at the same level with pretty much equal ball possession, with the latest statistic having Valencia 52% of the ball control vs the 48% for Atletico Madrid.

First chance would come for Atletico in the 8th minute with a shot by Arda, but Diego Alves saved the goal without too much trouble.

Then in the 28th minute Valencia had a chance through Piatti, who's shot was saved by Atletico goalkeeper.

The other interesting thing was when Diego gave Diego Godin a KO trying to punch the ball and hit Godin with his elbow.

79th minute Diego would fire a shot, but Diego saves again no big deal and then in the 88th minute a huge chance for Atletico Madrid after Rami made a big blunder and miss-kicked the ball, but luckilly nothing came out of it as Diego once again claimed the ball.

Player Ratings:
Diego 6.5 - Assured performance and when called upon made the saves.
Miguel 4.5 - Largely anonymous performance with few lapses of concentration.
Rami 5.5 - Started well making several interceptions and ruined a good performance with his late game mistake.
Ruiz 5 - Started shakier of the defensive duo, but improved as the game wore on and made few good blocks.
Alba 6 - Had a good defensive display and more offensive than Mathieu at times on the side there.
Albelda 6.5 - Great performance from the veteran who made some key interceptions and fouls at key moments to stem the Atletico Madrid attacks.
Tino 5 - Largely anonymous performance with more defensive play and wasn't very influential in midfield as the midfield was constantly bypassed from defense to offense.
Pablo 4 - One of those really bad performances where he did not do enough and what he did was all bad or didn't work.
Piatti 5.5 - Drifted on the left side and unable to link up play forward, but was active in trying and has few decent moments.
Mathieu 5.5 - Some good and some bad moments for Mathieu and while the left wing was a lot more dangerous than the right it doesn't say much as both Miguel and Pablo were bad tonight. Had few defensive lapses later in the match.
Soldado 5.5 - Did run channels and tried to position himself in a good position, but he lacked service tonight.
Subs:
Aduriz 5.5 - Did well after coming off for Soldado and found himself in few decent positions, but as Soldado really lacked service.
Jonas 5 - Did not have enough time and the match largely passed by him.
Bernat N/A - Not enough time.

Official: Jinko new Valencia CF shirt sponsor

Chineese energy company Jinko is Valencia CF new general sponsor. Today was the official presentation of the sponsor with the new shirts with the Jinko logo on them.

Right now it seems as if the contract is only on 6 months and worth 2 million euros. Compared to Real Madrid and Barcelona the shirt sponsor for Valencia CF is rather modest, but still its better than nothing. Every last bit of money helps.

Racing Santander 2-2 Valencia CF - Match Report

Yesterday was a bad day for Valencia CF as the team is now on its 3rd draw and one loss three weeks in a row. The match against Racing was very important for Valencia CF to get back on the winning track and Racing represented a good opportunity as even though their last 5-6 matches have been decent their attack was poor and defense average and in the bottom of the table.

The match started really weird with the midfield duo of Ever Banega and Tino Costa clearly not working properly. Racing  also came very early to a lead through Munitis who provided the assist and Adrian who scored.

Then Emery took off Banega in the 30 minutes with now it seems a knee injury. Topal came on to replace Banega. With one defensive midfielder now Valencia CF actually started playing better and Tino had a good match dictating play and keeping possession for Valencia CF.

First half didn't have many chances, except in the 21th minute when Jonas shot from up close, but only at the goalkeeper.

The second half was quite uneventful as well and it wasn't until Aduriz came in that Valencia actually managed to score with one of their little chances. It was Aduriz after a corner kick by Tino Costa in the 66th minute.

Then in the 79th minute Aduriz would score again this time with his header after a powerful shot by Ricardo Costa was blocked by the goalkeeper but only towards the oncoming Aduriz who gave Valencia CF the lead.

The happiness would not last long as Topal had an accident with some Racing player going head to head and having to play with 10 men and Racing would use that and score in the 88th minute to level the score.

With all the time wasted through injuries the referee awarded 7 minutes of additional time in which Ricardo Costa got a red card after some saber rattling with some Racing player.

Racing would have have the last chance in the 96th minute, but Alves would do a good job and make a save to keep the result at 2-2.

Player Ratings:
Diego 4.5 - Did a poor job. Wasn't tested too much, but could have done better for the two goals and even though he had one great save in the 96th minute, it was a poor performance overall.
Barragan 5.5 - Did well going forward and not particularly troubled at the back.
Costa 5 - Not very reassuring performance, although not directly at fault for the goals.
Ruiz 6 - Had few good blocks and that seems to be his overall strength, did a good job overall.
Mathieu 4.5 - Made several mistakes and one particular awful foul that earned him a yellow. Probably too fast to play after coming from injury.
Tino 7 - Great play by Tino who really shined after Ever was subbed and provided the assist to Aduriz first goal.
Ever 5 - Very poor play and obviously injured with reports now have as knee injury.
Feghuoli 4.5 - Lost too many balls and way too ineffective on the wing.
Jonas 5 - Mediocre performance and the highlight was a shot early on that went straight to the goalkeeper.
Piatti 5.5 - Quite active and seems to be performing better, probably a little tired tonight after a match only 3 days earlier.
Soldado 5 - Very ineffective and was nowhere to be seen. I feel like Emery should give him longer breaks from time to time as he has been one with the most minutes.
Subs:
Topal 5.5 - Did better than Ever and was actually a factor in play with some neat and simple passing and a better defensive job. Had a small brain damage after a collision head to head with another player.
Aduriz 7 - Great play by Aduriz scoring two goals after coming one. Some good poacher goals. He too suffered small brain damage and temporary loss of memory after a similar collision with one of the Racing defenders.
Bernat N/A - Not enough time.

Racing Santander vs Valencia CF match preview

Racing Santander vs Valencia CF

Stadium: El Sardinero
29th January, 2012; 18:00CET
19th matchday, La Liga
Expected Attendance: 19.500
Coaches: Juanjo González and Unai Emery

 

This weekend Valencia CF travels to Santander to face off against Racing for this 19th matchday in what is going to be a crucial match after a few missteps in the Spanish league.

Valencia CF will be looking to get on the winning ways and try to close the gap between Real Madrid and especially Barcelona now that they drew with Villarreal, but also get away from Levante and the renewed Atletico Madrid who are climbing fast.

Unai Emery doesn't have steep competition right now and his job is safe, but if he fails to win this match he is going to come under pressure from the fans and the management there is no doubt about it. He is likely to have straighten things out with Tino Costa and Parejo for now and in that case is going to be relaxed ahead of this match. Right now both Banega and Tino are playing good, although Banega does seem on the downfall right now and will need a strong game tonight if he is to turn things around and fight off competition from Tino.

Racing Santander are currently 16th on the table with 20 points and under threat of relegation, although the points difference between the 10th place and 19th place is small and only Villarreal surprisingly is in real immediate danger of relegation and its a real possibility let me tell you. If they don't turn it around in the next several games their mentality will change from a competitive top 6 team to a small second division team and its going to get a lot harder to avoid relegation, especially after players start to get demoralized.

But Racing is right now in a bad, but not that bad of a position and will be looking for draw against Valencia and continue their slow climb on the table. 

Racing are overall a balanced team with a small weaknesses in attack with only 15 goals scored, though they are not far off other team surrounding them. Their best goal scorer is Christian Stuani with 5 goals scored so far.

Valencia CF managed to beat Levante twice in the Copa Del Rey and are now in the semi final and will face Barcelona, but even so this is a good success and will be coming to this match relaxed, but hopefully not too relaxed because they've been slipping up in their last games.

Emery won't bring Miguel, Rami and Parejo, while Pablo is still injured and Albelda is serving out his red card in the last match. Good news is that Mathieu has returned and will travel with the team, although he probably won't be starting the match.

Valencia CF squad:

Goalkeepers: Alves, Guaita
Defenders: Bruno, Barragán, Dealbert, Víctor Ruiz, Ricardo Costa, Jordi Alba, Mathieu.
Midfielders: Tino Costa, Topal, Éver, Bernat, Feghouli, Piatti.
Forwards: Jonas, Aduriz, Soldad.

CA Osasuna vs Valencia CF - Match Preview

CA Osasuna vs Valencia CF

Stadium: Reyno de Navarra

22nd January, 2012; 12:00CET

18th matchday, La Liga

Expected Attendance: 17.500

Coaches: José Luis Mendilibar and Unai Emery

 

CA Osasuna has been in good form this season and for most of the season has been in the top 7. Right now they are in the middle of the pack, but they have shown that they can compete with anybody and are going to be very tough opponents for Valencia. 

 

Osasuna's best goalscorer is Ibrahima Balde with 5 goals scored so far and Raul Garcia is leading the assists chart with 5 of them. Both of them are likely to be the main threat for Valencia and so having the defensive midfielder closely follow those two would be best.
While Osasuna can be quite dangerous in attack their defense is one of the worst in La Liga with 30 goals conceded with only last placed Zaragoza and 18th placed Sporting Gijon having worse defensive records.

With this knowledge one can expect Osasuna to come out fighting and attacking for the start in order to cover for their defensive weaknesses so a more patient approach on the counter would be smart tactical choice for Valencia.

Valencia CF lost last match in La Liga against Real Sociedad and failed to come closer to Barcelona and Real Madrid. Luckilly the match later in the Copa Del Rey against Levante was won handily and made the loss from Sociedad a non issue, but Valencia CF need to get back on the winning tracks in La Liga, especially now since Atletico Madrid have started playing again and are demolishing everyone with the appointment of their new coach Simeone.

Unai Emery is having some selection problems with unfit or injured players and so only 18 players have been selected to travel and with them is B team players Portu and Juan Bernat. We are most likely going to see a 4-3-3 formation because we just lack wingers right now and Bernat would be risky to play since Valencia really need a victory in this match.

Valencia CF squad:

Goalkeepers: Diego Alves, Guaita.
Defenders: Bruno, Barragán, Dealbert, Rami, Jordi Alba.
Midfielders: Albelda, Topal, Éver, Tino Costa, Portu, Feghouli, Juan Bernat, Parejo.
Forwards: Jonas, Aduriz, Soldado.

Valencia CF 4-1 UD Levante - Match Report

Valencia CF 4-1 UD Levante

Possession: 65%-35%

Goals: Jonas, Soldado, Kone, Piatti, Tino

Assists: Pablo(2)

 Fouls: 18-19

The match started with a slow tempo with Valencia CF in control of the match as Levante seemed content to just sit back and defend and try to do something with the occasional counter attack. Apart from few runs the first bigger chance came in the 10th minute with Jonas shooting in goal after a corner kick by Tino Costa, but unfortunately it didn't go through.

After quite a battle in the middle of the pitch Valencia CF had the second chance in the 23rd minute as Piatti started a good attack, passed the ball to Pablo and this one made a wonderful pass just in the right time to release Jonas who slotted the ball into the net. It was 1-0 for Valencia.

28th minute a chance for Jonas occured once again after a corner kick by Tino Costa, but this time he only managed to shot at a Levante player in front of him.

30th minute goal by Soldado after a good run by Pablo did few dribbles to get past his marker and crossed the ball to a Levante defender, but this one had a poor clearance and bounced the ball to Soldado who wasn't going to miss an easy chance and easily slotted the ball into the net to make it 2-0 for Valencia.

Levante did attack actually and won a corner and it was after the corner which Alba cleared, but only shortly to the 25 meter and the ball went to Kone who with a very powerful shot, probably will challenge for goal of Cope Del Rey scored a goal for Levante. Diego Alves had no chance to stop it, although Rami could have probably done a little bit more to block the shot.

Then just in the final minute of the first half after an almost 5 minute siege in front of Levante goal and few attack, Pablo would break the ice once again and provide a great cross for Piatti who with a bit of luck got to the ball before Levante's goalkeeper and scored to make it 3-1 for Valencia CF.

Second half started in a similar fashion and it wasn't until the 60th minute when it came to more action as Barragan and Pablo both had long range efforts.

62th minute good chance for Levante on the left side by Roger I think, but Albelda managed to sprint to him and close him out in the last second and block his shot.

70th minute dangerous header by Adil Rami after a free kick by Tino Costa, but it went just wide.

It was only until the 89th minute when the next big chance came and it was for Levante as Kone found himself alone on goal, but his shot was saved by Diego Alves.

93th minute goal by Tino Costa after a counter by Valencia. The shot deflected off from a defender and lobbed the goalkeeper. It was 4-1.

Technical Details:

Valencia (4): Diego; Barragan, Rami, Ruiz, Alba; Albelda, Tino; Pablo(67min Feghuoli), Jonas(84min Aduriz), Piatti(74min Banega); Soldado.

Levante (1): Keylor(46min. Munua); Juanfran, Cabral, Ballesteros, Javi Venta; Iborra, Pallardo, Xavi torres, Barkero(11min. El Zhar); Kone, Roger(71min Rafa).

Player Ratings:

Diego 6 - Not troubled at all, made one good save in the last minutes to deny Levante a second goal.

Barragan 6 - Did well in attack and was quite dangerous. Never really challenged in defense.

Rami 5.5 - Not his best match as he has few lapses of concentration.

Ruiz 6 - Had two good blocks and was not troubled too much at the back.

Alba 6 - Good defensive and offensive display, but nothing spectacular.

Albelda 6.5 - Standard industrial performance with one particular good block.

Tino 6.5 - Good all round performance and a goal to top it all off.

Pablo (MOTM) 8.5 - Man of the match performance and one of his best performances in a long time. Provided 2 assists and directly created all 3 goals.

Jonas 5.5 - Scored a goal and was generally threatning in attack, but lost the ball too many times and made too many bad passes.

Piatti 6.5 - One of his better performances in a Valencia shirt and would be pleased with tonight's performance. Scored a goal to top it all off.

Soldado 6 - Scored a poachers goal and continues to consistently increase his overall goal tally.

Subs:

Feghuoli 5 - Wasn't very effective and unable to replicate Pablo's performance.

Banega 5.5 - Showed off a few tricks and showed off his passing range, but didn't have time to influence the game too much.

Aduriz N/A - Had a good match for the amount of time he had and was involved in two actions.