Valencia Sets Sight On Champions League, Eyes Asian Talents

SINGAPORE, Sept 3 (Bernama) -- Having made a good start in the current La Liga season, Valencia Club de Futbol (VCF) is gearing up to compete in the Champions League once again, says its new coach, Nuno Espírito Santo. Speaking to the media during a brief visit to Singapore, Espirinto Santo expressed confidence that his players' unity will translate into more successes on the field. He said: "At Valencia, we prize team spirit above all else. We are all about the team and not individual star players. I don't work alone. I have a good team of coaches to help me. "We're building on Valencia's tradition of mixing experienced and young players in the first team. "Our main objective for this season is to play consistently and move to the top of the La Liga and return to the Champions League for the 2015/16 season." Espirinto Santo, who took over as coach in July, said the team comprises members with experience playing with other big clubs, Valencia's own home grown talents, and young rising stars. Valencia started the 2014/15 La Liga season in good form, with a late away draw at Sevilla on the opening weekend before winning 3-0 against Malaga last Friday. Espirinto Santo, team captain Dani Parejo and striker Rodrigo Moreno, are here to meet with Singapore businessman Peter Lim, who is close to sealing the deal to buy the club, and meet with the media in Asia. Founded in 1919, Valencia is one of Spain's leading clubs with over 95 years of history. It is one of the top 25 football clubs in the world and currently eighth on the UEFA ranking. Espirinto Santo said Valencia is looking to expand its brand internationally with a strong focus in Asia. "We aim to have physical presence in some of the key Asian cities where we have a substantial fan base, and are also on the lookout for Asian players with potential." Early this morning, Valencia announced the loan signing of Álvaro Negredo, one of the top strikers in European football from English champions Manchester City. The loan deal made at the close of the summer transfer window came with an obligatory purchase clause for the Spanish international. In addition, the club is exploring opportunities to develop Asian football talents through its youth development programmes, said Espirinto Santo. Valencia's Global Academy is reputed for its training programmes which target children from ages 4-18 years. It has an enrolment of 620 children in 38 teams from more than 13 nationalities including China, Korea, Switzerland, Cameroon, England, France, Uruguay and Argentina. --BERNAMA