Football Season Guide

Valencia hoped to turn a page this summer after the disastrous 2015-16 season came to a conclusion with a 12th placed finish and no promise of European football to come this term. Their pre-season preparations have been beset with problems, however. There was the expulsion of Dani Parejo after he fell out with Pako Ayesteran which seemed to suggest that the new manager was already struggling to control the dressing room. Parejo has since apologized and the captain has returned to the fold; Ayesteran’s power seems to have held, just. More worrying perhaps are the results and performances in pre-season, which have betrayed a potentially catastrophic shortcoming in defence. Rumours suggest that Shkodran Mustafi could yet join Arsenal during the transfer window, which would exacerbate an already disturbing trend at the back for Los Che. Peter Lim has invested a great deal in this team but progress has stalled; unquestionably, this Valencia side looks weaker than it did a year ago under Nuno Espirito Santo, which is cause for grave concern considering the season which followed. Ayesteran needs to win back the players, who always seemed vaguely perplexed under Gary Neville, and clarify the system. This side was a defensive powerhouse two years’ ago under Nuno and the aim is to restore that dominance, especially in front of the instinctively exigent home fans at Mestalla. So far, Los Che have recruited sparingly. Nani could be an impressive addition on the right wing and Alvaro Medran and Martin Montoya will compete for regular slots in central midfield and at right back respectively. But they haven’t quite balanced the incoming signings with the outgoing players yet. Sofiane Feghouli, Andre Gomes, Alvaro Negredo, Pablo Piatti, Danilo, Rodrigo de Paul and Antonio Barragan represent a significant chunk of the first team squad who have left, around double the number of the recruits. The aim for the season is to return Valencia to Europe and preferably the Champions League. That would usually be a minimum requirement but they have to be realistic following the debacle of 2015-16. There are big doubts about whether they have the squad depth to do it, although it will help that they can focus solely on domestic football this term. There was a definite improvement in Valencia’s approach play in the final weeks of last season under Ayesteran and he will be looking to carry that positivity into the new campaign. First and foremost, he needs his underperforming players to step up. With Negredo gone, Paco Alcacer is once again the undisputed starting striker and will be looking to restore his Midas touch; if he can lead from the front with goals, then all the better for Valencia’s prospects.