Marcelino: "We made too many mistakes which denied us a closer tie"

Marcelino García Toral addressed the UEFA Europa League defeat to Arsenal in his post-match press conference at Mestalla, hailing the efforts of the players and wishing the English side well in the final.

Congratulating Arsenal
“First of all, congratulations to Arsenal for going through to the final. I think that overall, over the two legs, they were the better side. We wish them a very good final and hope they have the opportunity to win it. They showed great effectiveness, coinciding with our defensive showing not being good overall. It is very difficult to reach a final when you concede seven goals."

Picking the players back up
"Picking the players back up will not be easy after this game. I want to thank the players and show them my pride and satisfaction at being their coach. I want to thank them for getting this far, for competing in three games per week -every week- since January. This situation could definitely take it's toll on us in terms of freshness and quick decision making. What I'll take away from this game is the hard work done, and now we have to recover after a big blow mentally. They gave their all on the pitch. We started off wonderfully and we sowed the seeds of doubt, but from a simple goal kick, Aubameyang scored. From there, it was over."

Moving on
"Our obligation now is to pick ourselves back up. In three days' time we have another final, andwe have to win it. It's a very important game for a group who have been through a lot of adversity over the course of the season. We need to believe in ourselves and realise that we need to grow. We have to win the game on Sunday to have a real chance of playing in the Champions League next season. The past has no solution, but the future does. We will be sad tomorrow, less sad the day after and on Sunday we will be focused on winning. We will keep fighting, as we have two extraordinary objectives ahead."

The fans
I also want to thank the fans for the support that they showed us and the welcome they gave. They were with us to the end. We thank them for the ovation they gave the players at the end of the game. With all our respect and fondness, we ask them to support us in another final on Sunday. It's obvious that Arsenal have a superior budget to us, but we knew that and it shouldn't be used as an excuse. We made too many mistakes -some individually and others conceptually- that denied us a closer tie."