Villarreal CF midfielder Dani Parejo has sent a message of support to all those who have been affected by the severe effects of the flooding in Valencia

Villarreal CF midfielder Dani Parejo has appeared in a press conference at the José Manuel Llaneza Training Ground, sending a message of support to all those affected by the flooding catastrophe in Valencia.

This is what he had to say:

A message of encouragement to the people affected by the flooding

“Despite the situation, I think the team is doing as well as possible. It is a very difficult and complex situation that is affecting thousands of people. We want to give them all the encouragement in the world. It is impressive to see all the people who are travelling, from all over Spain and even abroad, to help those who are ill, when those who could have been there have not been. You are always touched by a family member or friend who is going through this kind of situation, and really, until you go there, you don’t know the magnitude of the problem. I personally have gone there to help, as have many of my team-mates. It has been shown that the people are always there and between us we will overcome everything.”

No help is too little

“I do know people who have been left homeless and with nothing, although fortunately they have not lost any loved ones, although there are many people who have. I don’t know how long it will be before these people can have a decent life again. Going there is like going to war. In my case, for example, I went to Sedaví to help remove mud as best we could. It’s wonderful the effort people have made and I thank all those people who are doing their best to help those who have nothing now.”

Overcoming the difficult situation

“It was very difficult to be thinking about football when what happened happened. We, for example, last week the match was suspended and this week, in principle, we are going to play. It’s true that we haven’t competed for the last two weeks and that shows in the match intensity. We are training in the best possible way, preparing for Saturday’s game, which is a very important match against Alavés. Hopefully we can win and dedicate the victory to all the victims who are suffering from this catastrophe.”

The world of football has thrown itself into the tragedy

“The clubs in the Region of Valencia and even all over Spain, and beyond, and not just in football alone, there are many people who have done and will do so. And I’m sure there will be more contributions and donations from clubs in the top flight. Just looking at the people who have been involved, I know of team-mates who have gone there to help. What I want to say is that we are normal people, we have our friends, we talk about everything. We are not on the outside of society and we don’t think we are on the outside of society. You have to be informed, know what is happening in your country and then be able to speak out and raise your voice.”

Football that demands more and more intensity

“If you want to compete and achieve great objectives and fight for beautiful goals, such as playing in Europe, you have to be very well prepared or it is almost impossible to compete. It’s true that I don’t really like the fact that they look more at data than footballing conditions, but it’s true that football nowadays is much more physical and much more contact-based.”

A vital match

“Now we have a difficult game against Alavés, who are coming off the back of a win at home. It’s a good challenge for us. We play at home and despite not having won three of the games we’ve played at home, I think that at home the team is responding well and playing great games. Let’s hope we have a good game on Saturday and we get a good result.”

Setting goals in the games

“So far we haven’t been able to keep a clean sheet in any game, and I think that has to be one of the objectives we set ourselves in the game. It’s also difficult for us not to score goals, the way the games are going. We need to have more concentration in both areas. Keeping a clean sheet is true that it gives you a lot of guarantees of winning, which depends on all the players, but the important thing is to play a good game, win and achieve our objectives.”