As we approach the winter break in La Liga we find ourselves in a great position to provide a stern challenge for a top four position in the second half of the season.
It is again imperative that we hang on to our prized assets although I believe this will be far easier than in the summer gone by and less specualation in the press should also ensure this is the case.

Its been a mixed bag of results so far in first half of the season in that we have picked up maximum points from tough places such as San Mames (Bilbao) but dropped crucial points against the so called ‘lesser’ teams of the division.
I guess for some Valencia supporters dropping home points against Real Madrid wouldn’t come as much of a shock however I still firmly believe that Real were there for the taking and we could have got a result on another day.

I truly believe we can and will finish in the top four and qualify for the UEFA Champions League and provide the club with a much needed financial windfall and in turn give the fans Champions League football in the first season at our new stadium.
Again our challenge in the Europa League seems to be taking shape and we will look to fend off any potential challengers from our rivals already in this competition and the teams dropping into the ‘hat’ from the Champions League. We can be a match for any team on our day and the likes of Liverpool,Juventus etc would not relish facing us in a two legged tie come February 2010.

All in all there are lots of reasons to be cheerful and revel in the fact that we are providing a challenge on both a domestic and European front and long may this continue.

David Villa spoke for the first time this summer to quash any rumours that he is about to leave Los Che and I for one think this is fantastic news for all supporters of Los Che around the world. The club have now said that they aren’t in a position where they have to sell which also boosts our chances of retaining the quality we already have in the likes of David Silva, Juan Mata and of course Villa.

As I stated in my previous article it is imperative that Los Che keep hold of their better players and build a team for future years and one that can lead a challenge both at home and in Europe. Our main aim this season has to be to qualify for the UEFA Champions League as not only does it inspire and bring out the best in players it also provides a huge cash incentive, players are less likely to want to exit Mestaila having achieved qualification for the premier European competition. I firmly believe that Los Che can mount a challenge this season on both a domestic and European front and can be a surprise package to a certain extent in La Liga given the enormous publicity that both Barcelona and Real have generated this summer with their ‘galatico’ signings, everyone expects Barca and Real to fight it out for the title and it would take a strong man to bet against it however history tells you that it’s often very difficult for a team to accommodate big name signings and achieve instant success and in Real’s case they have to accommodate more than one ‘big’ signing. The correct balance becomes vital in any team and often you find teams are set up to accommodate ‘big name stars’ and this nullifies other creative talents in a side, teams become predictable and you lose a certain amount of work ethic.

I predict a successful season for Los Che and one which should have many reasons to rejoice for our great fans

I like every other Spanish football fan eagerly await the start to the 2009/10 La Liga season and one which hopefully following a summer of turmoil at Mestaila will be ultimately successful for Los Che.

The message from the president (Manuel Llorente) and manager (Unai Emery) is that we have a team to challenge for honours and in order for this to happen we need to keep our best players to remain a competitive force.

Like every other fan of Valencia I was disappointed to miss out on qualification for the UEFA Champions League not least for the financial windfall this would have brought to our great club but also as we have over the years forged out great ties with this competition culminating in reaching successive finals in recent years, none the less we will proudly compete in the inaugural ‘Europa League’ which replaces the old UEFA Cup competition and on paper our squad is more than capable of mounting a serious challenge for this trophy.

As I have mentioned previously the key to success next season will be keeping our best players like David Villa and David Silva and with the recent good news regarding the sale of Mestaila this is something that looks a distinct possibility and despite the fact that we have lost Raul Albiol there is much reason to be cheerful as a fan of Los Che.
The clubs main aims in the short term are to achieve financial stability and this can be helped along the way by being successful on the field in both the domestic competitions and also in Europe and with Emery at the helm and the current crop of players it is a challenge that should excite the playing staff and stir the hopes and dreams of every Los Che fan worldwide.