“Granada will go out to try and play the game"

Valencia CF manager Nuno Espírito Santo gave the customary pre-match press conference on Saturday, in the run-up to the game against Granada CF on Sunday at 9pm local time.

"Our idea about how to play is clear. We will look for pressure and fast attacks, but many times your opponents don’t allow this to happen,” he explained. “Granada will go out to try and play the game. I expect an open game, that our opponents will look to attack and that we will be able to counter this. Granada have good strikers and Iturra an Fran Rico in the midfield. We know when we have to sit back and defend.

Nuno commented on Rodrigo de Paul, who had an excellent showing on Thursday and could feature against Granada: “Rodrigo has played his entire career on the left side as an inverted winger. For me, that isn’t his best position. He has a lot of mobility,” he said.

The Portuguese also assessed VCF’s current position, saying that "to get into the Champions League you need a lot of points –a lot. The first analysis we will make will be at the end of the first half of the campaign. There are 18 points in play. 70 points could be enough to get into the Champions League. I think that the team have deserved more points than they have right now. Sometimes you get points without playing well, and sometimes the opposite occurs.”