Valencia coach Rino Gattuso admits he's held crunch talks with his players ahead of today's clash with Real Valladolid.

Los Che have struggled since the turn of the year, with pressure intensifying on Gattuso.

The Italian said, "If you have played football, then you will know that, when there is a defeat like the one the other day, with the 30 years of experience that I have as a player and coach, it is normal for you to come to the press conference with a worried expression. After the game the other day, it is normal to be concerned and have doubts about what happened, because we lost a quarter final.

"My thinking is always positive. This team can play and have shown it. In these past 4 months everyone has talked about the team's style and we have had incredible matches with personality.

"We are just missing competing without the ball and reading the game. That is what we have to improve. If we have to play a long ball, I am not shocked, as it is part of the moment and the process we are going through. But I see the way the team train and how we prepare for the game, which is why I spoke with the players. I didn't talk to them yesterday to find out if they were with me, because I already see that in training. But it's normal that if we are going through a negative period, we talk to find out the things we are doing wrong."