Valencia coach Ruben Baraja has explained the departure of Gabriel Paulista.

The defender left for Atletico Madrid this week.

Baraja said: “The club set out some guidelines in the transfer market, as they did in the summer, in which economic adjustments that I am not in charge of had to be made, and the club transmitted the message.

This situation has been going on since last summer and is an economic criterion. Paulista was a player with prestige, one of our captains, and the financial aspect took priority over the sporting side.

We try to field players who perform and from there, economics have taken precedence. We appreciate his commitment, he is a good professional, and that economic criterion is what rules the transfer market.

We can't come here to dramatise and look for excuses, it's not my style. The team have won with Gabi, without Gabi, with Diakhaby, without Diakhaby, with Mosquera, without Mosquera, and the most important thing is always the team and the group."