Utrilla 0-3 Valencia (Copa del Rey)

 Valencia advanced to the last 64 of the Copa with an easy win at Aragonese 5th level club Utrillas. Bordalas didn't go too mad with the starting line-up, mostly giving a start to the regular subs. Defender Tarrega was the only debutant. One of the main questions was who would start in goal with Jaume, Mamardashvili and Rivero all possible. In the end it went to Jaume, which must raise questions about Mamardashvili's role in the team. He started very well, but will he be content to hang around to be 3rd choice?

In contrast to recent games, it was a 4-4-2. Valencia dominated from start to finish, controlling possession at all time. The breakthrough goal came on 27 minutes, good cross from Musah, Maxi dummies and Andre finishes well. On 52 minutes we extended our lead through a penalty. It was a very soft penalty I have to say and I'd have been annoyed if it had been given against us. With none of the recognised penalty takers on the pitch, Cheryshev stepped up and.... had it saved. I thought it had gone out for a corner but while I was rolling my eyes and cursing the miss, I looked back at the screen to find Musah had scored the rebound. The third came on 70 minutes. Koba scored a nice free kick goal.

We could have had a 4th later as sub Vallejo was clear through but couldn't beat the keeper.

All in all, hard to draw any conclusions from games like this. I've been watching a lot of 6th level regional teams since I came down here and this was not much better. A lot of the younger members of this forum could train for a team like Utrillas and have a chance of playing for them. If anything. I'm a little disappointed we don't win such games more comfortably. Our goal on 27 minutes was actually our first shot on target. I didn't see anything in this game which made me think we've changed our recent dynamic or made me think "wow, I can't wait for the next league game." 

Draw for next round should be tomorrow or Monday. Another lower division away game.

Valencia 1-1 Rayo Vallecano Match Thread

Valencia CF match against Rayo Vallecano ended in a draw in what seemed like almost a carbon copy of the previous match, only this time Valencia CF played at home in the Mestalla and against a weaker opponent, but unfortunately that did not change the outcome of the match. 

Valencia CF needed a win here badly, otherwise the last two draws against Real Sociedad and Atletico Madrid would be meaningless as it is impossible to accumulate enough points by just drawing, Valencia CF needs to win against smaller opponents, but I guess at this point even Europa league is out of the question. Technically we are still very close points wise to 6th position, as its only 5 points difference, but Valencia CF will have to win several games in a row and other teams would have to falter few times in order for us to get back into a position to fight for an European league spot. 

Valencia CF took the lead early on through Carlos Soler who converted the penalty and put Valencia CF on a winning course. This was as good of a start one could hope for and you'd think Valencia CF would build upon it, but no it was Rayo Vallecano who actually turned the pressure on and started exerting dominance in the match. Valencia CF focused on defending and absorbing Rayo's attacks and for the most part it worked. While Rayo were the ones attacking they did not create too many chances or scoring opportunities. 

The second half of the match was pretty much the same with Valencia CF primarily defending with the occasional counter attack, with Rayo Vallecano attacking and trying to equalize the match. I think Valencia CF should have exerted more control in the second half and prevented Rayo from constantly attacking. I think if you defend constantly for 90 minutes with very few attacks its essentially just a matter of time before you concede and this turned out to be the case here. It didn't take long in the second half for Rayo Vallecano to equalize the score. It was Palazon who scored the goal after the ball had been punched by Cillessen. 

If we analyze the goal a little bit we see that the chance was created from the left flank, there was no one covering I think it was Ivan Balliu who's run closer to the penalty area was not followed by anyone, Gaya was nowhere to be found and he was left completely unmarked, thus allowing him to pass deep into the penalty area, it was Catena who received the ball, he wasn't in the best position for a shot, but he sort of made it work, but his shot was kind of weak and this allowed Cillessen time to react and punch the ball away, but I think he could have maybe even tried to catch the ball as it was a weak shot and moving quite slowly. Thing is Catena was also not properly covered, I don't know who was supposed to cover him or be in that space, I saw Diakhaby being the closest to him, but I feel like someone even before that should have blocked the pass. Anyways Diakhaby was too far away from him and couldn't block the shot, Cillessen did punch the ball away from goal, but the ball ended up to Palazon and again he was completely unmarked. Foulquier did not move at all, maybe he was setting up an offside trap, I don't know the exact tactical details and whether the tactics were to setup offside traps, if that was the case then Diakhaby played him onside as he tried to run towards him and prevent his shot, but that just made him onside. If there was no tactical decision to setup an offside trap there, then Foulquier was just way out of position and caught sleeping at his job.

It literally took 4 mistakes in Valencia's defense one after another for Rayo Vallecano to score, but it happened. We saw 3 Rayo Vallecano players completely unmarked and pretty much every single Valencia CF player in and around the penalty area out of position. Wass, Soler, Helder Costa, Gaya, Diakhaby, Foulquier were all out of position and their reactions were way too slow. 

The goal shook up Valencia CF and they started playing, coming close to scoring in the 66th minute through Soler as he received a solid pass from Maxi Gomez, his shot was good as well, but Stole Dimitrievski was position well and made the save. 

Valencia CF would try to regain control of the match and go on the offensive with mild success, there would certainly be more tries towards Rayo's goal, but it was too little too late. Valencia CF were able to muster up a shot on goal in the later portion of the match, but that too was easily saved by the goalkeeper. Jose Bordalas would try and remake a Atletico Madrid scenario where Valencia CF scored 2 goals in the span for 2 minutes by bringing in a ton of attackers in the closing stages of the match, but he was unable to replicate that performance and Valencia CF were lucky to not lose the match in the end as Martin found himself in a great position alone towards goal and he was able to beat Cillessen and score, but offside was ruled very late in that situation, I thought that Rayo Vallecano had actually scored. 

I think the reason why Valencia CF only managed a draw in this match is because Valencia CF didn't want to win. From the start of the match the team was contempt with just defending. Even after the early goal you'd think it would relieve the pressure from the players and they would be able to more freely play and this would result in much more fluid and attacking football, but no quite the opposite happened. Even the occasional counter attacks were low effort and there was no intent behind them. 

I think sitting back and defending against stronger opposition and especially away from home can be utilized and maybe it can work, but for home matches against technically weaker opposition I don't see how that can bring us results. I think Valencia CF should have been on top of this match from the very first second and relentless to score as many goals as possible and win in a convincing fashion. The team was so focused on defense and not conceding that they forgot there is more to football than that and even with so much focus on defense there were several mistakes in our defense leading up to Rayo's equalizer. There were numerous mistakes that happened one after another that led to their equalizer and so the who focus on defense ended up completely meaningless and useless. 

I think Valencia CF need to achieve a balance between attack and defense and in terms of defending we need to get rid of individual mistakes that often lead to these goals, but we are going to concede goals, its inevitable part of football so you have to outscore your opponent as well. I think the team has to be strategic when they defend and that is not from minute 1 against a weaker opponent at the Mestalla. I think it would have been okay to try and play for a bigger win until the 70th minute and then start backing off and focus more on defending your existent lead. Its easier to defend a result for 30 minutes, than it is to defend it for 90 minutes. 

Real Sociedad 0-0 Valencia CF

Valencia CF managed to secure a draw against the second placed team in the league at the Reale Arena in what is a continuation of some decent results in recent weeks. Real Sociedad were hoping to secure a win at home and at least temporarily just to the first position on the table, but Valencia CF had other plans for them and managed to contain their attacks and secure an important draw.

This result can only be good if Valencia CF wins their next match against Rayo Vallecano though, as getting draws against strong opposition is good, but its the wins against weaker opposition that ultimately can propel the team on the table, so next match against Rayo Vallecano is crucial. 

Unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to watch the match, so I can't comment on it beyond the highlights. Again good result overall considering how strong Real Sociedad are at the moment and the fact that Valencia CF played away from home, but this just gives more onus to get a win in the next match.

Valencia CF 3-3 Atletico Madrid Match Report

What a turnaround!!! The last 15 minutes of the match were some of the most exciting moments of football I've watched in a long time, especially from Valencia CF. Now imagine that kind of intensity and intent for most of the match, that would be an extremely exciting and powerful Valencia CF team to watch. 

What can I say, from the 80th minute, all the way until the 97th minute, there was a long stoppage time of 7 minutes and towards the end, in the 95th minute Valencia CF managed to equalize the match! 

I thought this match was over after they scored their second goal, I thought there was no chance for Valencia CF to equalize against such a defensively solid team and then Atletico Madrid scored a 3rd goal. They were better in ball possession, they were better in passing,  they had the initiative as if they were playing at home. I tuned out for about 10 minutes and then tuned in again at about the 70th minute and Valencia CF was looking to attack, was looking for opportunities and was trying to score, even so it would have been hard to image Valencia CF ever equalizing this game and then the 80th minute started passing, Jose Bordalas decided to bring in 3 basically attacking players all at once and replace our defense and Carlos Soler in the 85th minute, last gasp desperation move! 

Who would have known that it would actually work, Valencia CF managed to score in the 92th minute through Hugo Duro and then just 3 minutes later score once more to equalize the score and manage to rescue a draw! 

I could not believe what I was seeing, it was incredible! This is the type of Valencia CF I want to see all the time, fighting for every ball, running up and down the pitch constantly, running channels, overwhelming the opposition. The last 15 minutes of this match should be the model for Valencia CF! 

I think this also shows that we don't have defenders who can push the ball forward, apart from defending our central defenders are unable to push the ball forward and we always end up skipping the midfield. With more players willing to move the ball forward and to receive it we were able to dominate for 15 minutes, we were able to win every single ball and to force Atletico Madrid players to make mistakes! 

Again the first 60 minute of this match was Atletico Madrid playing and Valencia CF just doing nothing, the occasional counter attack, the occasional good play, but for the most part sitting back, defending and just crossing the ball far, hoping to somehow score! I did not see Valencia CF getting a result, even when we equalized it was an own goal from Stefan and Valencia CF did not look like they were able to score on their own! 

This is a positive result, I would have taken a draw even before the match started, but the team has to improve! This 3-3 result can not be a fluke, we need to see initiative, we need to see a fighting spirit, we need to see playing every match like its a final! 

Valencia CF 2-0 Villarreal CF Match Report

Valencia CF finally records a win after 7 matches in which the team only managed a measly 3 points! The win comes at the expense of Villarreal CF who were in a similar position to Valencia CF and both teams needed a win to set the course right! 

I got to be honest I didn't think Valencia CF deserved to win, I think we were just a bit more lucky today, I think the fairest result would have been a draw, but hey I'll take a win wherever I can. 

Uros Racis started the match in place for Carlos Soler as the coach obviously didn't want to risk him, Foulquier also started instead of Correia, though both players were eventually subbed in and got to play. We had a similar lineup to previous ones, with the standard back 4, Hugo serving as a defensive midfielder, while Wass and Uros Racic playing a bit more forward, with Helder Costa and Guedes on the flanks and Marcos Andre as the sole forward. 

The match was fairly equal from the start with both teams fighting for control of the midfield, but Villarreal CF exerted more dominance in the early stages and dominated possession for long periods of time, with Valencia CF relegated to defending. Villarreal would have the first more serious opportunity in the 28th minute with Arnaut Danjuma having a shot at goal that went just wide. 

Then in the 41st minute Serge Aurier volleys the ball towards goal, but Cillessen is able to just reach it and deflects the shot, saving an almost certain goal there. 

Valencia CF looked destined to lose once again, with the team barely having 28% ball possession and most of the attacks were coming from Villerral CF who looed more likely to score, but in what was a individual bit of skill Hugo Guillamon received the ball in a good position and lobbed the goalkeeper to put Valencia CF ahead.

Second half was pretty much a carbon copy of the first, Villarreal were trying to find the equalizer, but just weren't too dangerous in attack, while Valencia CF was contempt to sit back and occasionally attack through counter attacks. Then in the 77th minute Foulquier rushed into the penalty area to intercept a ball, but an opposition player hit him instead of the ball, prompting the referee to award Valencia CF a penalty! 

Carlos Soler stepped to the penalty spot, he sent a rather weak shot right in the center, but the goalkeeper essentially jumped before seeing the shot, and went too far on the side. 

The last 15 minutes of the match were basically injuries after injuries, mostly for Valencia's players, but there doesn't seem to be anything serious, except for Paulista who might have renewed the injury he had before the match and might be out for the next match, but we'll have to wait and see. 

So there you have it, a 2-0 win over a direct rival and finally a win under our belt, but it felt a bit lucky, it felt a little bit undeserved. We were completely outplayed in every department, but with a little bit of individual skill and luck we managed to get a win. I think the play needs to seriously improve if we are to stand a chance against any team. 

FC Barcelona 3-1 Valencia CF Match Report

1: Match starts. It will be an interesting game as both teams have good chances to win tonight!

4: GOOOOOOAAAALLLL!!!! Valencia CF scores through Jose Luis Gaya! Valencia CF gets a corner, the corner kick gets deflected few times and ultimately goes towards Gaya who was standing just outside the final third and send in a powerful shot and scores a goal.

9: Good chance by FC Barcelona, a cross goes towards Jordi Alba, he rushes towards the ball, but Gaya just reaches before him and send the ball into corner

10: Counter action developing for Valencia CF on the other side, but Maxi is dispossessed from the ball.

12: Barcelona gets an equalizer, Depay send a pass to Fati and this one with a powerful long range shot beats Cillessen. 

17: FC Barcelona having the initiative in the past 5-6 minutes, Valencia CF need to take control of the ball and start bullying Barcelona.

21: Valencia CF with a big chance as Guedes send in a pass into the penalty area, unfortunately no player from Valencia CF is there to take advantage of it. 

24: Counter attack for Valencia CF, Maxi gets handles a long range cross, brings the ball down and send a through pass to Guedes, he dribbles past one player and shoots, but his shot goes wide off goal. 

32: Barcelona attacking, dangerous cross from the right side, but Paulista clears

35: Another dangerous attack by FC Barcelona, trying few shots towards Valencia's goal, but VCF players covering good and blocking the shots.

38: Penalty for FC Barcelona after a minor contact between Gaya and Fati, there was barely any contact, but its Barcelona the refs have to help them.

40: Memphis Depay scores from the penalty spot, Cillessen had no chance. The penalty was completely weak, 9 out of 10 times in other circumstances that wouldn't be a penalty! 

49: Great save by Cillessen after a powerful shot towards goal by Fati, Valencia CF need to step up in this second half.

52: Amazing chance for Valencia CF as Guedes play Soler on in a good position, he shoots but hits the post. 

57: Goncalo Guedes shoots from outside the box, but Marc-Andre ter Stegen saves

60: First change for Valencia CF, Hugo Duro leaves for Marcos Andre 

66: Chance for Barcelona as Coutinho tries to shoot from the side, but he is covered and the threat neutralized.

83: Good goal kick taken by Maxi Gomez, but goes just wide.

84: Goal by Barcelona, poor marking and tracking by our players allowing Dest to send a cross to Coutinho who found himself alone at goal and easily slotted into the net.

85: Match is over, kind of an easy win for Barcelona as Valencia CF did not took its chances and allowed Barcelona too much space!

93: Final whistle, Barcelona wins against Valencia CF at the Camp Nou. 

This is it ladies and gents, Valencia CF lost against FC Barcelona, I said that a draw doesn't benefit either side and we would likely see a winner and we did, unfortunately for us it is Barcelona, they just seemed to want it more tonight. Valencia CF had its chances, we had few good chances in the first half and then also few more good chances in the second half and almost equalized, but luck was not with us. I also think that loose penalty turned the game around, up to that point the game was equal and FC Barcelona didn't seem like they are able to score, but putting them on top just before the half time just negatively affected Valencia CF players. 

It was a fairly close game, both teams had their chances, Barcelona were just slightly better and had more of the initiative, but looking at the performance and statistics it was a fairly close match. I think our lack of depth really hurts us, okay you can put in Cheryshev in for Hugo Duro, but who else? Helder Costa has barely featured and even tonight didn't get much minutes, so we have no clue of his performance, but overall our substitutions did not add anything, in fact they seemed to weaken the team. 

Worse Valencia CF teams have beaten a much stronger Barcelona, so its a big shame that we could not beat them, this leaves us in a difficult position as we are now cemented in the middle of the table and the great start to the season seems like a distant memory. Thankfully we have some easier matches coming our way and we should be able to make some progress there and acquire some points.

Cadiz CF 0-0 Valencia CF Match Report

This match was supposed to be Valencia's turnaround to make a course correction over the past few bad results, and get back on winning ways, but unfortunately we have a serious lack of depth. I wrote it in the match preview that our squad depth is thin, but that we should have enough to beat a weak Cadiz who have one of the worse defenses in the league, but I guess even that is a high order.

Without Correia and Gaya bombarding on the wings and Soler with his creativity and technique we don't seem to be creating many chances and even the ones we create there is no person who can finish them consistently. This match was supposed to be Marco Andre's time to shine, but we saw why he isn't highly valued and why is was a bargain sale, albeit a bit more expensive than his actual market value.

The start of the match was back and forth between the teams with each side taking turns and attacking on the opposition half, with neither team having more control. As the match was progressing Valencia CF started asserting more and more control and the team has some small chances mainly through Guedes to score, but nothing major. Most of the attacks ended in lost balls and futile dribbles, with lack of vision and creativity in Valencia's play. Omar Alderete had a chance later in the first half, but his header went wide. Just before half time Valencia CF had a penalty claim and after the VAR check the play was continued and no penalty was awarded.

Second half started a bit more positively with Valencia CF being more assertive, aggressive, and a bit more lively resulting in two long range shots from Daniel Wass early on and these were good efforts, but both were saved by Cadiz goalkeeper. 

Valencia CF would have a big chance in the 58th minute when a dangerous pass from Yunus Musah on from the right flank almost found Hugo Duro, but you'd be excused if you think Andre and Duro conflicted with each other and basically prevented themselves from scoring. 

The next big chance for Valencia CF would come in the 81st minute when Goncalo Guedes play a perfect chipped pass for Hugo Duro, but his shot was saved by Ledesma. Goncalo Guedes several minutes later would also come close to scoring, but his shot just went wide. 

Overall Valencia CF did have few good chances to score, but no one pounced on those opportunities and ultimately the game ended in a draw. I think overall the play was good, but there just wasn't enough attacking quality to score goals or create more opportunities. I think the team today lacked both. 

Its a shame because Cadiz CF is one of the weakest teams in La Liga and dropping points against such teams will cost us in the end. I still think we lack a high quality striker who is able to score more goals and even create opportunities for himself. I think Guedes did well today, he had few shots towards goal, he provided some good passes and crosses, even a key pass to Hugo Duro which should have resulted in a goal, but but again we lack a true goal scorer. 

CA Osasuna 1-4 Valencia CF Match Report

Valencia CF continues to perform surprisingly well, I think a lot of us were enthusiastic for the new season based on our preseason performances and some of the purchases towards the end of the transfer window, but performances like this are really surprising and unexpected. All the better as its good to be surprised in a positive way and hopefully the team can continue to perform like this and continue to get results.

This match started favoring Osasuna as they were given an early penalty in the 6th minute, but after the VAR check the penalty was revoked and play continued. The celebration for Valencia CF didn't last long though, as just two minutes later CA Osasuna would take the lead through Jon Moncayola who's effort beat the goalkeeper.

It looked like a lost game from the start for Valencia CF as Osasuna had the initiative and were a goal up at home, but slowly but surely Valencia CF started gaining control of the match and were beginning to attack more and more. Goncalo Guedes would have few decent runs at goal, but nothing concrete.

Then in the 26th minute Valencia CF would equalize the score as Carlos Soler puts in a cross and find Maxi Gomez who controls the ball well and shoots past the goalkeeper. 

The game dropped off a lot after the equalizing goal as both sides were taking it a bit easier and apart from a few tries of both sides there was no killer chance for the rest of the first half. 

Just before the half time whistle though Denis Cheryshev got injured and was replaced by Foulquier, his first outing for VCF. 

Thankfully it didn't take long for Valencia CF to take the lead in the second half as just 5 minutes in as Aridane Hernandez would head the ball into his own net after a cross by Guedes. Just minutes later it would be Goncalo Guedes once again that would make the difference, this time with a goal on his own after an assist by Daniel Wass.

CA Osasuna would manage to score in the 62nd minute after a misunderstanding and confusion between Alderete and Giorgi, which allowed Darko Brasanac to kick the ball out of Giorgi's hands and slot in into the net. VAR was initiated and after checking the goal it was reverse and the goal canceled. Personally I think the goal should have stood as Giorgi was just claiming the ball from the ground, he barely got his hands on the ball when it was taken from him, he did not claim the ball securely into his hands and it was not in an elevated position, but whatever the goal was revoked, I guess compensating for all of the terrible calls we've gotten last season. 

Ultimately Valencia CF would kill off the game in the 72nd minute as Omar Alderete found himself in the perfect position to head on the cross from Soler right into the net. Osasuna's keeper didn't have a chance as it was a powerful header. 

Valencia CF would have few more pokes towards Osasuna's goal, even Musah would come close to scoring towards the end of the match, but the end result ended up being 4-1 for Valencia CF.

Overall after a slow and shaky start to the game Valencia CF grew into the game and came into its own, culminating in four goals scored and few decent opportunities for even more. Great performances from all of the players, but especially Goncalo Guedes and Carlos Soler. 

Valencia CF 3-0 CD Alaves Match Report

Valencia CF went into this match with big expectations, but a big question mark on their performance as well and the team answered. Beating CD Alaves comfortably 3-0 was indeed an impressive feet and what is even better than that is that the team did not look troubled at any point of the match. 

I wrote in my match preview that this was a much win match for Valencia CF and anything other than a win would be a big disappointment and a bad omen for the rest of the season, but I also thought the team is likely going to win the match, predicting a 2-0 win for Valencia CF. The team obliged and even went further beating CD Alaves by three goals to zero. 

Valencia CF started strong from the get go and it didn't take long for them to find the back of the net. Cheryshev started a semi counter attack from the middle of the field, ran further up with the ball then plays a tricky 1-2 with Guedes, the return pass was precise and finds Cheryshev in an advanced position on the left flank, he passes the ball in the penalty area and finds Daniel Wass who slots the ball into the net. 

Minutes after the goal Valencia CF would have another solid chance for a goal through Guedes who was released by a through pass from Soler, but his shot hits the post.

Granada CF 1-1 Valencia CF Match Report

Valencia CF came into the Granada match following an emphatic victory over Getafe CF with Valencia CF looking to extend their run of wins against a weaker side in Granada CF, but Granada had other plans. Early in the first half Granada CF would take the lead through a powerful counter attack with Luis Suarez getting on the cross of Carlos Bacca, escaping Alderete and firing a precise show low into the corner, beating our new goalkeeper Giorgi and putting Granada one up.

Valencia CF would not lose confidence though and would continue attacking, with the determination to get one back in and equalize the match. This would result in several good chances for Valencia CF, mainly through Maxi Gomez and Goncalo Guedes, but Cheryshev and others had decent opportunities as well. 

Guedes would fire a good shot after a good pass to him by Maxi, but his shot was weak and the ball was cleared with Maxi and Cheryshev also having shots at goal, but failing to convert. Valencia CF would keep attacking and passing the ball mostly through the wings with Gaya and Correia constantly joining the attack and sending in crosses and passes.

None of the attack would pay off though as Valencia CF did not have finishers this match and all of their efforts ended up being wasted in front of goal. If this match proved anything it is that no matter what coach or playing style Maxi Gomez just isn't our goalscorer and the sooner Valencia CF can get an attacker the better, though the timeframe is getting shorter and shorter. 

Valencia CF would continue with its attacks in the second half and once again most of its attacks went through Guedes, but unfortunately no end ball or a goal and it seemed as if Valencia CF would lose this match, but then Gaya decided to take matters into his own legs and act out a foul, which not only tricked the referee, but the VAR observers too, awarding Valencia CF a penalty. Maybe they were just trying to  compensate for the terrible calls Valencia CF had last season, but they gave the penalty and once again Carlos Soler was precise from the penalty spot.

Just as soon as Valencia CF scored, Granada scored once again, as if the universe punishing VCF for a false penalty. But the referees were on our side once again and VAR once again determined a hand play and the goal was disallowed. This was a proper decision though and the end result stood at 1-1. Valencia CF is still unbeaten in La Liga, but there is much improvement to be made if Valencia CF is going to have any chance for European football and we are only talking about Europa league, no chance for CL it seems this season!

Valencia CF 1-0 Getafe CF Match Report

Valencia CF first 2021/22 season match started with a hard fought win over Jose Bordalas former team in what was an eventful and intense match. Right off the bat the match turned bad for Valencia CF as Hugo Guilamon was shown a red card for a high leg collision with Maksimovic after VAR reviewed the incident. Truth be told it was not a straight red card for me, both players had their leg up, both lunged towards the ball and both sort of hit each other with the leg, Hugo actually lifted his leg second after Maksimovic and therefore it was higher at the point of impact, making it look worse, but it was no worse than what Maksimovic did. 

Terrible call from VAR, why is it even used to judge cases like this? Isn't it supposed to be for extremely questionable things like hair splitting goal line calls and hair splitting offside calls, not for fouls or stopped play. 

Anyways this did not prevent Valencia CF from launching counter attacks and on one occasion Cheryshev got the ball wide on the left flank, moved inwards towards the penalty area, he had two Getafe defenders on him and when he reached the penalty area he was fouled and a penalty was awarded to Valencia CF. 

Soler stepped to take the penalty, backed away a short distance from the ball, engaged in a slow run towards the ball and placed a low right sides shot towards the goal, with the Getafe CF goalkeeper misjudging the direction Soler would shoot and lunging at the wrong side. Soler scores and Valencia CF get a lead on Getafe CF in what was otherwise a bad situation for the team.

Valencia CF 3-2 Villarreal CF Friendly Match

Valencia CF just played its first preseason friendly match against Villarreal CF and it was Jose Bordalas first game in charge of Valencia CF as the team took on the yellow submarine in what was a tough first preseason friendly. 

Valencia CF starting eleven was Cillessen, Thierry Correia, Alderete, Paulista, Musah, Racic, Hugo, Sobrino, Fran Perez, Vazquez and Diego Lopez.

Villarreal CF had the initiative for most of the match and were awarded two goals for it, but Valencia CF rallied later in the second half after quite a few substitutions and ultimately managed to win the match. Jose Bordalas will be slightly worried about the performance for the first 60 minutes, there were some positives and standout individuals, but it was only after dozen of changes on both sides that Valencia CF managed to find the back of the net, twice through Manu Vallejo who came in as a substitute.

It was Denis Cheryshev who gave Valencia CF the win late in the 94th minute after positioning well and intercepting a cross from Jason, then going forward a bit and scoring.

Valencia CF is still missing quite a few players though, with Guedes, Soler, Gaya and others yet to return and start their preseason preparations. 

SD Huesca 0-0 Valencia CF Match Report

So a bit of a surprise with the starting eleven, I was expecting Voro to give some of the peripheral players some run out in the last match of the season, but Voro has always been very conservative and he decided to pretty much field mostly the strongest starting eleven (Maxi's inclusion aside), with Gaya being out of the starting eleven as well, with Toni Lato being given a chance here and Wass also being given a rest with Racic starting in his position. 

It was the same setup he's used as well with a back line of 3 players with Correia and Lato acting as both wingers and wide defenders depending if the team is attacking or defending, in the mid we have the trio of Racic, soler and Kang-In Lee and up front Guedes and Maxi Gomez. 

SD Huesca needed a win to stay in the first division, but unfortunate for them they only managed a draw with Valencia CF, while their relegation rival Elche won their match by two goals to zero against Atletic Bilbao.

Valencia CF 4-1 SD Eibar Match Report

Valencia CF trashed SD Eibar 4-1 in what was a goal fest for VCF fans. Its been a while since Valencia CF won by more than one goal difference and with such a convincing scoreline. Even though we won by a lot, it was still a fairly competitive match, SD Eibar did have more control of the ball, they did have the initiative as well, but Valencia CF defended well and hit them hard on the counter attack. This formation and system is basically designed to absorb attacks and then hit them back on the counter, relying on our fast paced players to do some damage. 

As soon as the match started Valencia CF scored a goal. Soler moving towards Eibar box, releases a powerful through ball that reaches Guedes and he is precise and scores.

Eibar would try and return the favor as they gained the initiative and started looking for a goal, they would have few longer range efforts, but nothing would come out of it. Valencia CF would basically defend mostly and have a few tries on the flanks. Then in the 19th minute Carlos Soler would score the second goal for Valencia CF.

The third goal would come in the 30th minute, once again Carlos Soler with the goal to essentially seal the match. SD Eibar would not have it though and got one back in the 38th minute after a tap in from Bryan

Sevilla FC 1-0 Valencia CF Match Report

Unfortunately second shift at work again and these midweek games are really hard for me to watch, work gets in the way. From the play by play, reports and highlights from the match it seemed like a really close match, with both teams having chances to score, but Sevilla FC just barely managing to edge out Valencia CF. Again it seems as if Valencia CF did compete really well with Sevilla and if the team had been a bit more lucky the result might have been different, a draw would have been a fair result, but Sevilla FC is riding their luck and tempo this season. 

Mistake from Ferro for Sevilla's goal, he was the ones marking the player and he allowed his mark to get away and receive the ball in a great position, even have time to setup and shoot wherever he wanted, Cillessen had no chance. I'm not going to be too hard on him though, he's barely played and all of a sudden put in such a big game against a very good Sevilla side. Plus anyone can make that mistake, VCF were setup to mostly defend, and hit them on the counter, and it mostly worked except for their one goal.

If Valencia CF can maintain a similar level against every opponent I think the team has solid chances to think about Europa league. I won't overstate things after two games and we know Voro is going to be at the helm for these matches and next season would be a new coach and we might even see a big sellout again, so it might even be a different team.

I'm just hoping we get to keep Gaya, Paulista, Soler, Correia and Guedes, I think these are the players we need to build a successful team around. Maxi is very replacable, Cheryshev, Gameiro, Diakhaby, Jason, etc.. are all replaceable, but they are also the ones who can bring the least amount of money to the team from their sales and that is where the issue lies. 

What did you think of the match, did Valencia CF deserve a draw here?

Valencia CF 3-0 Real Valladolid Match Report

Valencia CF with a convincing win over a combative and really solid Real Valladolid team. If you'd ask me in the first 30 minutes of the match if Valencia CF would win, I would have doubt it and even a draw would have been fine with me, but two solid goals from Gomez changed the whole game. Its been at least 3 months I think since Maxi Gomez last scored a goal and in this match he scored two and from two. He had two chances and scored from both, amazing performance, where was this guy the whole season?

I didn't expect too many changes from Voro, but I was surprised by the changes. It wasn't numerically many changes, but the concept was different. He started with 3 central defenders, 5 players in midfield with Correia and Gaya also serving as defenders when Real Valladolid attacked, but serving as wingers when Valencia CF was in attack. Wass and Soler completed the midfield with a forward 3 of Kang-In Lee on the right flank, Guedes on the left and Gomez in a central forward position. 

Real Valladolid started well, better than Valencia and had few quick chances. Valencia CF would counter and mount few chances of their own, but noting would come out of them. The match sort of slowed down a bit from the 25th minute, with Real Valladolid having control of the ball and trying to create something, but all of their efforts were stopped and they did not have any serious chances.

Valencia CF 2-3 FC Barcelona Match Report

Valencia CF plan against FC Barcelona was to sit back and defend with numbers, park the bus type of strategy and hit FC Barcelona on the counter, all good, but you need to have a solid defense for that and Valencia CF doesn't! The team did hold out for about 55 to 60 minutes truth be told, but then the flood gates opened and Barca scored three goals in succession. 

Valencia CF wasn't without its chances, Gaya had an early chance which he blew, Guedes had a good chance later on, Racic, Guedes in the second half, etc... We had our chances, there were good chances as well, but we didn't manage to score from them! Its also shameful when our defenders seem to have more goals than our attackers, though our defense is with its own set of issues!

It was a fairly close game all and all, yeah Barca had a little bit more chances and complete ball control, but Valencia CF was with its own serious chances and the result could have easily been 3-3 or 2-2 or 4-4 or whatever had Valencia CF took at least one of its early chances! 

Valencia CF 1-1 CD Alaves Match Report

Classic Valencia CF! We can't seem to be able to win a straight match, today was an overall good performance, Valencia CF had most of the possession and was a lot more dangerous with that possession as well, creating dozen of chances mostly through Guedes who was really on fire in this match, but Valencia players were really wasteful in front of goal. 

Guedes provided several good passes to Gameiro and Maxi Gomez who failed to score time and time again. We had at least 4 solid chances in the first half to get ahead, had we converted some of those chances the team could easily have been up by two goals, possibly even more, but again we were very wasteful in front of goal and failed to score. 

The second half was similar to the first in that Valencia CF had the initiative, had opportunities, but again very wasteful and casual in front of goal. Gameiro would score in the 56th minute what was in my opinion a legitimate goal, but for some reason it got checked by VAR and they decide it wasn't a goal, how, why, I have no clue! It wasn't an offside, literally millimeters to decide, I don't think a human can really make that decision that its offside based on millimeters, and even if it was, it wasn't reflective on the play, meaning the offside didn't affect the goal at all. I don't understand why was the goal even being checked? Why even have referees on the field if every goal and every things is going to be checked by VAR? 

Real Betis 2-2 Valencia CF Match Report

The game played out as expected, Real Betis was considered the favorite coming into this match and they affirmed that position by playing slightly better. They had more possession and a little bit more attacks, though overall Valencia CF was pairing them fairly well.

Valencia's troubles started due to terrible defending once again, Real Betis with a throw in to a player, this one finds Joaquin alone and unmarked on the left flank and passes the ball to him, Joaquin runs forward and towards the goal, gets a cross and finds Fekir who is also unmarked for some reason, gets a shot in and the ball goes into the net. 

Valencia CF would fire back through Guedes who's thankfully playing some solid football, really impressive stuff and has scored or provided an assist in the last 5 matches in a row I believe. He got the ball from Uros Racic, ran past his marker and as he was being pulled to be brought down on the ground he managed to fire a shot and scored. It was a very impressive goal. 

Valencia CF 2-2 Real Sociedad Match Report

Valencia CF had such an advantage going into this match, with almost half of Real Sociedad squad out injured, the rest fatigued from a mid week match against Bilbao, Valencia CF with pretty much all of its players available for selection and it still isn't enough. 

Andoni from Real Sociedad handles the ball with his hand and gives away a penalty, Soler sets up to take it and he misses. We were served a goal on a platter and still couldn't take advantage of it. Then as a punishment for the missed penalty Real Sociedad instantly score a goal. The first real attack by Real Sociedad and our defense makes a mess out of it, and Uros Racic loses his mark, then Soler rushes in but is tricked also and loses the player, Diakhaby comes to cover, but again he doesn't apply enough pressure and Guevara is able to send a shot wide and low, Jaume fails to reach the ball and its a goal.