Real Madrid 0-0 Valencia CF

Guaita 7 - Some great saves by Guaita to prevent Real Madrid from scoring.
R. Costa 5 (FOTM) - Did average on the right side, made few mistakes and didn't offer much in attack.
Rami 7 - Great match by Rami, one of the few he hasn't made any mistake and dealt with every Madrid attack.
Ruiz 6.5 - Similar performance as Rami, though a bit less effective and had to make some last ditch tackles.
Alba 7 (MOTM) - Great performance at the back and was rarely challenged, offered support in attack and had few good opportunities in attack as well.
Topal 6.5 - Good match by Topal, had some key intervention in the middle and defense and was very reliable in helping the defense.
Parejo 5.5 - Had quite a lot of defensive duties and really helped out in defense, short and accurate passes to get the ball rolling in the midfield as well.
Feghuoli 6 - Great start to the match and one of the most active and dangerous members of Valencia, somewhat subdued in the second half and was replaced by Pablo.
Tino Costa 6.5 - Good performance at a more advanced position, had several shots, two of which hit the post. Good ball retaining and retained quite a bit of possession for Valencia.
Piatti 6 - Didn't cause too many troubles at the right, but was in position to shoot few times and had one good shot saved by Casillas.
Aduriz 5.5 - Not very effective, although was an aerial presence from corners and had a few headers.
Subs:
Mathieu 5.5 - Wasn't better than Piatti and apart from a chance soon after his arrival that he could have easily converted into goal, was rather modest in his contribution forward.
Pablo 5.5 - Had two shots towards Real Madrid goal, but wasn't a constant threat and tended to drift into the middle of the pitch.
Soldado 5.5 - One good header to grant Alba a good opportunity, didn't have time to impact the game.

April's fools

Hi there. In case you didn't know the last report was a fake and it was Aprils 1st joke. For those who got it great and those that didn't great as well, for some that took it way too seriously and had to curse and insult in the comments and email get over it, its a joke.

I wish the Levante draw and Emery's troubles were a joke as well, but they are not and my sources tell me that if Emery doesn't win the next La Liga match its almost certain that Emery will leave. What is known is that their is a battle going on in the board room and behind the scenes and even Llorente's job is insecure. I'd also like to take this opportunity and come to Llorente's defense and reach out to the Spanish fans to support this amazing president as he has made Valencia CF great again!

Official: Unai Emery fired

Earlier today I wrote an article explaining how Emery was under immense pressure to produce a win against Levante in order to stay as coach, but with the unfortunate draw he's been fired.

This was cooking up for months now as Valencia CF were getting bad results since Januray and it seems like today's draw was the last straw.

Reports have it that Mauricio Pochetino is the coach that will replace Unai Emery.

Unai Emery's last match vs Levante?

Valencia CF coach Unai Emery has been under increased pressure for the past month, after a very poor start to the second half of the season in which if we don't count the points from the first half would be fighting to avoid relegation.

On the back of few new losses in Spain and in the Europa League he is given an ultimatum to win and if Valencia don't win he could be out of the team. Manuel Llorente is supportive of the coach, but he is also pressured from the board and if he wants to stay president of Valencia may succumb to the pressure to fire Emery.

So tonight's match may as well be Emery's last and unless the team form changes drastically and we gets several wins in a row he is going to be under constant pressure. A little bit reassuring is the fact that Valencia CF has beaten Levante pretty easily 3 times before this season.

Manuel Llorente had a meeting with the players

Valencia CF president Manuel Llorente attended yesterday's Valencia CF training and after the training had a meeting with the players, before giving a small interview with the official website.

The president said he wanted to observe the training and talk to them later and give the coaches and player support.

When asked why he was present on the training he said:"I wanted to tell them to change the attitude, be optimistic and to have belief in ourselves as we do have the quality."
"The next couple of days we are playing very important matches and our players must have confidence. We have great coaching staff and great players."
When asked about the fans calling for results and the removal of Emery, Llorente said:"Our fans just like all fans want to see their teams do the best and have good results, but our fans must be patient as we can't have results as we had a decade ago overnight and they must be patient."

This is a great turn of events as if you recall one week ago I started the call for Llorente speak with the players and also for Albelda as the captain to react and we got both things.

Manuel Llorente talked to the players and Albelda had a press conference with positive words, so hopefully this will have a positive effect and allow Valencia CF to get back on winning ways!

Getafe CF 3-1 Valencia CF - Player Ratings

Valencia CF lost yet another match and this is getting really ridiculous. The team has been absolutely terrible ever since the winter break and things have gone from bad to worse. Right now there must be something done, even firing Unai Emery within the season in order to have a small boom to propell us to a third place spot. Right now not only is 3rd place under threat, 4th place is also under threat.

Guaita 4.5 - Could have done better for Burno's own goal, but his punch was weak and the ball went into the net. Not to blame for the other goals, but a poor match overall from him.
Bruno 4.5 - Unable to do anything forward and wasn't really convincing in defense either with the own goal being the highlight.
Rami 5 - Not responsible for the goals, but where is the communication between the defense, must take blame.
Ruiz 4.5 - Was gone for the second goal and this allowed Getafe to have more men in the penalty area and score. Nowhere to be found on the other goals either.
Alba 5 - Poor challenge for the cross that lead to the second goal, was nowhere for the third either and did nothing in attack.
Topal 5 - Obviously wasn't very effective helping out in defense and didn't contribute anything in attack either.
Parejo 5.5 - Has no clue in defending and while he is decent in keeping possession his passes are safe and not good enough to help spur on attacks.
Feghuoli 5 - Useless. Failed to do anything at all. Did not dribble, cross or anything, just returned the ball as soon as he'd get it.
Jonas 5.5 - Good movement and pass to assist Soldado for the goal, but took to many touches and dribbles after and failed to be dangerous at all.
Piatti 5 - Invisible. Barely had any effect and didn't contribute anything.
Soldado 6 - Scored a goal, but that was about it. Not much service from his teammates.
Subs:
Pablo 6 - Better than Feghuoli, but that doesn't say much. Wasn't too effective.
Mathieu N/A - Game was over when he arrived
Aduriz N/A - NET

 There is no top or flow of the match because everyone was a flop and that is just the sad reality of our play tonight.

Getafe CF vs Valencia CF - Match Preview

Getafe CF vs Valencia CF

Stadium: Colliseum Alfonso Perez
24th, March, 2012; 22:00CET
30th fixture, La Liga
Expected Attendance: 15.000

  Coaches: Luis Garcia Plaza and Unai Emery

Getafe CF has had a mediocre season so far and that has been quite disappointing for them as they hoped for a strong season just like the one they had two years ago, but it seems that is not going to happen as some of their best players have been taken and while Pedro Leon has returned to them on load they are have a weak team overall. One could say that this season is panning out good for them, as last season they barely avoided relegation.

Getafe CF have had a pretty good run of form for a while now and in their last 5 matches they've won 2 times, draw 2 times and lost once. While this isn't something to write home about or to put you into top 6 competition, they've been collecting important points to stick in the middle of the table.

Getafe have lost their last four league meetings with Valencia. The Madrid side are without a clean sheet in their last seven Liga clashes with Los Che, conceding an average of 2.7 goals per game.
Right now they have a solid defensive record with only 35 goals conceded, one that can match even Valencia CF actually, while they are average in terms of goals scored, keeping up with the mid table teams.

Getafe CF squad: to be announced...

Valencia CF are coming to this match in really bad form and after a devastating loss against Real Zaragoza just 3 days ago even though Zaragoza  was playing with one less player for 70 minutes. This was a huge loss, especially after a great victory over Atletico Bilbao earlier.

Valencia CF second half of the season has so far been miserable with tons of losses and draws and very little wins, and as if that isn't enough the team hasn't even been playing well. This will be a start test for the team and especially Unai emery who is sitting on the hot chair right now and his position and job is threatened. We've been seeing for 3 matches in a row the crowds at Mestalla waving white clothing, meaning  that they want Emery done and gone.

Fortunately for Valencia CF, the first half of the season was rather great and we've had a big cushion of points, that and the competition just hasn't been there, with Levante being the closest rival for most of the season and that says something about the competition or lack thereof.

Valencia CF squad:
Goalkeepers: Diego Alves, Guaita.
Defenders: Bruno, Víctor Ruiz, Rami, Ricado Costa, Jordi Alba, Mathieu.
Midfielders: Albelda,Tino Costa, Topal, Parejo, Feghouli, Pablo, Piatti.
Forwards: Jonas, Aduriz, Soldado.

Head to Head

Date	Home		Away	Competition
Oct 29, 2011	Valencia CF	3 : 1	Getafe CF	Primera Division
Apr 02, 2011	Getafe CF	2 : 4	Valencia CF	Primera Division
Nov 14, 2010	Valencia CF	2 : 0	Getafe CF	Primera Division
Feb 22, 2010	Valencia CF	2 : 1	Getafe CF	Primera Division
Sep 23, 2009	Getafe CF	3 : 1	Valencia CF	Primera Division
Apr 05, 2009	Valencia CF	4 : 1	Getafe CF	Primera Division
Nov 09, 2008	Getafe CF	0 : 3	Valencia CF	Primera Division

Technical Details Valencia CF (probable setups):
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Line-up: Diego; Bruno, Rami, Ruiz, Alba; Topal, Parejo; Feghuoli, Jonas, Piatti; Soldado.
Tactics: High defensive line, all round pressure, interchangeable attacking trio, mixed passing.

Result Prediction:
Getafe CF 0-4 Valencia CF
Valencia CF has always done well against Getafe and in the past 2 years Los Che has been winning significantly against Getafe. Soldado has also been very potent against them and I'm expecting a strong reaction after the loss and a demolishing of Getafe of 4-0.

 Betting odds:

Getafe CF	5.00
draw	4.00
Valencia CF	1.30