Valencia CF (Spain)

Valencia CF

Ground: Estadio de Mestalla

Capacity: 49,430

Club Founded: 1919

League: La Liga (current level)

Few clubs in Spain can match the history, passion and prestige of Valencia CF. From the iconic Mestalla Stadium to memorable domestic and European triumphs, Los Che have long been one of the giants of Spanish football.

Club History

The Early Years

Valencia Club de Fútbol played their initial matches at the Algirós ground before moving into Estadio de Mestalla in 1923, which was inaugurated with a game against local rivals Levante UD. The move to the new stadium heralded success on the pitch as ‘Los Murciélagos’ were crowned as regional champions. 

Valencia won promotion to La Liga for the 1931-32 season, where they generally finished in the lower reaches. Nine years after reaching the top-flight, the side won the Copa del Generalísimo, as the Copa Del Rey was known at the time, with a 3-1 victory against RCD Español at Estadio Chamartín in Madrid. 

Spanish Champions

The team was also crowned champions of Spain under coach Ramón Encinas Dios, as Mundo scored the goals. Eduardo Cubells was at the helm in 1943-44 as a second title followed. The third La Liga title was delivered a couple of years later, with Luis Casas Pasarín in charge of the team. 

A second Spanish Cup win ensued before the decade was out, where a goal from Epi was enough to defeat Atlético de Bilbao in Madrid. The Mestella was increased in size as Spanish international Antonio Puchades and Dutch forward Faas Wilkes thrilled the supporters.

European Success

A third Spanish Cup followed in the 1950s, as a brace from Antonio Fuertes and another goal from Manuel Badenes was enough for the side led by Jacinto Quincoces to defeat FC Barcelona 3-0 in front of 110,000 spectators at Estadio Chamartín.

The club enjoyed European football, with success coming in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1961-62, where in the final, Valencia defeated FC Barcelona. The team coached by Domingo Balmanya saw Vicente Guillot score a hat trick in the first leg.

Argentinian Alejandro Scopelli was in charge of the team the following season, as they reached another final. Dinamo Zagreb were defeated, before Valencia were denied a hat-trick when they lost in a one-off game against Real Zaragoza at the Camp Nou in Barcelona twelve months later.

Former goalscoring hero Mundo was in his second spell as coach when the Copa del Generalísimo was lifted for a fourth time in 1966-67 after Club Atlético de Bilbao were beaten 2-1 at Estadio Santiago Bernabéu as Jara and Paquito netted the goals. 

The League Title Returns

The legendary Alfredo Di Stéfano took over as coach, leading the team to the Primera División title, as La Liga was officially known at the time, in 1970-71. The following season saw Valencia finish as league runners-up and Cup finalists for a third consecutive year.

Austrian midfielder Kurt Jara joined the club in 1973 before Di Stéfano was replaced by Milovan Ćirić, Dragoljub Milošević and then Manolo Mestre. Dutch maestro Johnny Rep joined the club in 1975, followed by Argentine hero Mario Kempes a year later.

More UEFA Success

Former midfield hero Marcel Domingo was appointed head coach, leading the team to lift the Copa Del Rey in 1978-79 with a 2-0 victory against Real Madrid through a couple of goals from Kempes. Di Stéfano returned for the following season as Valencia reached the final of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup against Arsenal at Stade du Heysel in Brussels. 

The game ended 0-0 with Valencia winning 5-4 on penalties, with goalkeeper Carlos Pereira the hero. However, the success came at a cost under the presidency of Vicente Tormo as the club hit financial troubles. 

Financial Woes

Head coaches came and went as the star players moved on and the team struggled. Di Stéfano could not save the team from relegation in 1985-86 when morale was low as staff and players went unpaid.

A new President, Arturo Tuzón, arrived and backed the coach, who led the team to promotion, as the Segunda División title was won a year later. Bulgarian forward Luboslav Penev was signed, with Víctor Espárrago taking over team affairs before Guus Hiddink arrived as head coach in July 1993.

The Dutchman steered the side to several top-four finishes before being replaced by the Brazilian World Cup-winning manager, Carlos Alberto Parreira. Andoni Zubizarreta, Oleg Salenko and Predrag Mijatović were signed, but the results on the pitch didn’t match the investment. 

This led to former Spanish national manager Luis Aragonés arriving to fill the head coach's role. Jorge Valdano replaced him, while more big-name signings, including Romário, Claudio López, Ariel Ortega, and Adrian Ilie, were secured. Claudio Ranieri took over as the head coach a couple of years later.

The Champions League Years

The Italian led his side to lift the Copa Del Rey, where Atlético de Madrid were defeated 3-0 at La Cartuja in Sevilla, thanks to two goals from Claudio López and the latest midfield star, Gaizka Mendieta. In the final season of the old millennium, Valencia qualified for the UEFA Champions League as Héctor Cúper replaced Ranieri. 

The team advanced through the group and knockout stages to meet Real Madrid in the final at Stade de France. Real won 3-0, but despite the setback, the team would return to a second final the following season. Mendieta put Valencia 1-0 ahead against FC Bayern München at the San Siro in Milan before the Germans eventually won the tie on penalties.

The vintage Valencia side contained stars such as Santiago Cañizares, Jocelyn Angloma, Roberto Ayala, Mauricio Pellegrino, Mendieta, Pablo Aimar, Didier Deschamps and John Carew. Rafael Benítez led Valencia to a fifth La Liga title in 2001-02, before the team regained the national title in dramatic circumstances.

Real Madrid were eight points clear in February, but lost their final five matches. Meanwhile, Valencia put a tremendous run together and overtook them to lift the crown. The team completed a double by winning the UEFA Cup against Olympique de Marseille at Gothenburg’s Ullevi. Goals from Vicente and Mista secured a 2-0 win.

The half-finished Nou Mestalla

Nou Mestella

After Benítez took up the manager’s job at Liverpool, several head coach appointments followed before the arrival of Ronald Koeman in November 2007. By then, work had begun on the construction of Nou Mestella, to replace the original a few kilometres across the city.

However, the planned opening date of the 2009-10 season soon ran aground owing to financial troubles. Koeman led the side to the Copa Del Rey the following April with a 3-1 victory over Getafe CF in Madrid. 

Unai Emery was the next head coach of note, with David Villa, David Silva and Juan Mata being the stars of the day as the club was still surrounded by debt. This led to them being sold. Former player Pellegrino and then Ernesto Valverde had spells in charge of the team, with the constant turnover causing instability on the pitch.   

Miroslav Dukic, Juan Antonio Pizzi, Nuno Espírito Santo, Gary Neville and Pako Ayestarán all lasted for around six months. Italian Cesare Prandelli fared even worse before Marcelino took up the reins in July 2017.

A Brighter Future?

A few months later, it was announced that the club would negotiate with the city council in an attempt, after several false dawns, to complete Nou Mastella. On the pitch, the team won the Copa Del Rey in 2018-19, defeating FC Barcelona 2-1 with goals from Kevin Gameiro and Rodrigo.

Two seasons later, Valencia reached the final of the Copa Del Rey, losing on penalties to Real Betis. The team came close to relegation before an improvement and the appointment of head coach Carlos Corberán in December 2024. Meanwhile, finances were secured so that Nou Mestalla, with a capacity of 70,000, could be completed, with 2027 the intended target. 

My visit

Valencia CF 4 UD Las Palmas 0 - Valencia win 5-1 on aggregate

Copa Del Rey Round of 16, 2nd Leg - Tuesday 9th January)  (att: 27,869)

👨‍👨‍👧‍👧 27,869 🎟️ €14

Perfect Timing for a Visit

The Copa Del Rey second legs fell perfectly as it coincided with the final week of my 2017 annual leave. Local rivals Levante UD and neighbours Villarreal CF were also at home, so I booked flights well in advance for £55 return and prayed for kind scheduling.

It was my lucky day with Valencia playing on Tuesday, with Villarreal the following evening. It could only have been better if I could have stayed an extra night to catch the Levante game.

Discovering Valencia

I’d purchased my online ticket for the match with a print-at-home option. I was really looking forward to visiting Mestalla, and I wasn’t to be disappointed with either the stadium or the city. I’d done plenty of sightseeing from my arrival, along with visits to the homes of CF Torre Levante and Paterna CF and a look at the half-completed Nou Mestalla. 

After a couple of libations, I checked in at my comfortable room at the Hulot B&B in the old town for a siesta. Unsure of where to go for a free match beer, I eventually decided to walk to Colón and take the Metro a couple of stops to Aragón, the nearest station to Mestalla. I found fans congregating and using several bars behind the main stand.

The Legend who is Manolo

My attention was drawn to a sign saying “Museo” above the Bar Manolo del Bombo. It turned out to be owned by Manolo, the legendary Spanish supporter who took drums to matches several decades before it became the trend. The great man was dressed in a full supporting outfit and grafting behind the bar, assisting his staff. 

The place was full of memorabilia, with drums commemorating matches and tournaments along with signed shirts and photos. The boss carried on pouring while posing for photos, as customers were welcome to go behind the bar. I could have easily spent a lot longer in there. The beer was cheap and the atmosphere excellent. It was just what was required.

Mestella Ambience

Many fans opted to carry on drinking in the bar and outside in the square, but I still had to work out how to get inside the stadium. The lettering wasn’t very clear, but I found my correct gate after one false attempt and a lap outside.

Once inside the stadium, the concourses and interior were very minimalistic, in common with the Nou Camp in Barcelona. There was not much room for the facilities that modern fans demand. Toilets and limited catering kiosks consisted of small huts. There wasn’t a TV in sight, not that it particularly worried me.

Traditional Over Modern

In a way, I prefer it when those attending were there purely for the football, rather than enjoying a meal and the sideshow. Nothing looks worse at modern stadiums than empty seats in the corporate areas, as “customers” have their fill and miss parts of the match.

I hadn’t seen anything yet, but I thought the gate system outside was confusing. I found the entrance to my block, but I hadn’t a clue where my actual seat was. The stewards seemed to be there for display purposes only. In Spain, in general, inside a stadium, it really was a case of using your nous.

Best View Acquired

Not that I was too worried. The stadium was far from full, so I waited until kick-off and selected the best empty view. I sat under the overhang of the tier above after taking a group photo for some fans. I took in what was an amazing venue. Three open sides had three huge, steep tiers of seating.

It meant that the stands were close to the pitch and enclosed the noise. The fourth side was contained corporate facilities and two tiers of seating.

The Match

The hosts had scored a valuable away goal in the first leg in the Canaries a week earlier and came into the match as strong favourites to progress. They held third place in the La Liga table, whereas Las Palmas were down in bottom place.

As expected, Valencia put the pressure on from an early stage. Las Palmas defended deeply and tried to frustrate their opponents and supporters, with little attacking threat. Gonçalo Guedes, Simone Zaza and Luciano Vietto all went close on occasions.

Eventually, ‘Los Che’ found a way through after half an hour. Nacho Gil crossed for Zaza to see his diving header saved by keeper Raúl Lizoáin, before Argentinian striker Vietto pounced to net his first goal in over a year.

Before the break, the visitors saw an equaliser chalked off by referee Carlos Del Cerro, after he adjudged that Jairo y Calleri pushed his marker before heading home past a static Jaume Doménech in the home net.

At the interval, I decided to wander around to get some new photo angles. I noticed that I could get access to a corner block without climbing any fencing. I don’t suppose I cut a graceful figure as I walked down a tight row full of fans!

I’d taken up a place under the overhang in time to see Valencia double their lead. Fine work out wide from Manchester United loanee Andreas Pereira set up Vietto in the box, from where the clever forward dinked the ball over Lizoáin and into the far corner.

Pressure from Pereira and Martin Montoya led to a weak clearance falling to Nemanja Maksimović, who fired in an absolute beauty on fifty-four minutes to make it 3-0 and end any lingering hopes of Las Palmas.

The best was still to come ten minutes later. Vietto spotted Lizoáin off his line and fired in a tremendous effort from close to fifty yards to the delight of the locals. The star of the show left to a standing ovation five minutes later.

Ninety-Minute Excuse Me

The final twenty minutes petered out. Valencia boss Marcelino García Toral used all three substitutes with his side in total control as they progressed to the quarter finals of the Copa Del Rey.

I left with just a few seconds remaining to get down the many steps and out of the way. Rather than queueing for the Metro, I decided to walk back to my room to get my spare pair of reading glasses, as my plastic-framed originals had snapped!

Valencia Bar Scene

My plan was to head to the area around Carrer dels Cavallers, as I had read that it would offer me the best options for bars and a late drink. It wasn’t as busy as expected, although it was a Tuesday night in January.

I found Café Negrito on Plaça del Negret, as I’d decided to head towards Finnegans Irish Pub. My phone App said Negrito was open until 3.30am, so that made my decision easy; not that I intended to stay out until that unearthly hour.

The beer was decent and priced fairly. The music was an eclectic mix, but mainly American-based with a mixture of funk, soul, soft rap and pop. I settled down to enjoy three pints before heading back down a maze of narrow streets. Somehow, I found the Hulot BB. It had been a long and fantastic day in a wonderful city.

The weather was chilly but bright and sunny the following morning, so I decided to blow away the cobwebs with a fifteen-minute walk back to Mastella to take some better photos in daylight. I found somewhere in Colón for a spot of breakfast to set myself up for the day, as I would be later heading to see how Villareal got on in the Copa Del Rey.