Ernesto Valverde: 'Games at Mestalla are always complicated'

Barça manager Ernesto Valverde gave a fair warning about the difficulties of playing at Mestalla during Saturday’s press conference, one day before Barça head to Valencia for a La Liga clash in which both teams will be looking to turn around a recent spate of unfavorable results in domestic competition.

Here are the highlights of what Valverde had to say on playing Valencia at Mestalla:

"It's always difficult to play at Mestalla. They're tough games because they're charged with emotion. On top of that, they are in a complicated situation since they have yet to win at their own stadium."

"Tomorrow we have a match similar to a Champions League fixture because of the quality of our opponent."

"Valencia vs Barça is one of the biggest games in La Liga.”

“They haven’t started off as well as in other years, but they have a solid foundation.”

“We’ll have to come out strong in the midfield to dominate the game.”

On the schedule:

“We accept it. We don’t think about it too much. We’ll take advantage by training with those who are staying."

On the league outlook:

“We have to be consistent to win La Liga, which is what we are seeking.”