Valencia boss Nuno Espirito Santo said he was saddened by his side’s elimination from the Copa del Rey at the hands of Espanyol.
Los Che went down to a second-half brace from substitute Felipe Caicedo as the hosts ran out 2-0 winners on the night to record a 3-2 aggregate victory, ensuring qualification for the quarter-finals of the competition.
“I understand the anger, disappointment and feeling of failure that our dressing room is sharing,” Nuno told a Press conference.
“We are saddened and frustrated, as are our fans, and today is a day of pain because we all dreamed of fighting for this trophy.
“But you have to suffer today and raise yourselves tomorrow. My team has shown that it does that at times like this.”
The key moment of the match for Nuno was the red card shown to defender Shkodran Mustafi on 13 minutes.
“It set the tone for the match and we then had to endure an onslaught from Espanyol. But it’s up to the referee and he ruled that Mustafi was the last man.”
