Mauricio Pellegrino has lamented the misfortunate circumstances that the fixture list has thrown up for Valencia, thanks to their Copa del Rey win.
Los Che won 3-1 against Llagostera on Wednesday night to record a 5-1 aggregate win to progress to the Last 16 of the competition.
There they will meet Osasuna, with the first leg due to be played at Osasuna’s ground just four days after their League meeting with each other at the same venue.
The issue for Los Che comes in their inability on the Saturday night after the League match to return to Valencia, as the local airport will be closed.
“It will be very hard,” lamented Pellegrino in trying to imagine how Valencia will not allow this to hinder pre-match preparations for the Cup game.
“Furthermore, we do not know when we will play the first leg of the Cup, and that has not been decided if it is a Tuesday or Wednesday, so we’ll have to wait to decide on how to prepare for the match.”
Pellegrino also reflected on the difficulties his side encountered in ensuring their passage to the next round, admitting that motivation for the competition has so far been difficult.
“Sometimes even we are tired of watching football and, moreover, lack the motivation. We did not expect to suffer in this game, but now we are looking towards our next match.”