Gennaro Gattuso has completely changed the mentality of an entire institution like Valencia CF in just a few months in charge. After multiple years of mediocrity in the outcomes of the team, disconnection with the crowd and disputes between the coach and the ownership, the club has finally found in the Italian coach the right candidate to stabilize the sporting course and also appease the general discontent of the people with the unpopular management by the dome led by Peter Lim.

Paradoxically, the antidote has been someone whose nickname is “Ringhio”, which means ‘grunt’ in Italian, due to the intense character that he has shown throughout his entire career. A good dose of charisma that has been useful to transform the mood of the fans and bring some confidence to the same players that did not have any aspirations at all in the last few seasons.
Since his arrival to Valencia back in June, Gattuso has revitalized a team weighted by the lack of resources to compete against the best teams until becoming it to a squad full of confidence in what they do and that count again on the support from the crowd, as they have felt totally identified with the Italian’s coach character since day one.

A coach that runs, screams, sweats and is always on any action of his players in search of perfection, as he is showing a huge passion for anything he does in order to rebuild Valencia and take them back to the upper mid-table area. And so far he is in the right track to pull it off.
Gattuso has completely modified Valencia’s approach until becoming them in a team that wants to dominate the ball, presses high and is vertical forward. A squad that elaborates every action, intensifies the anticipation and manages to punish in the opponent’s box thanks to their two bullets on the wings, the arrival capacity from their midfielders and the innate goal for what they have signed Cavani. Even with the last-minute transfer of one of their symbols, Carlos Soler, the group has stick together and they are convince of the process they are going through.

Valencia have experienced a clear metamorphosis towards excellence within their capacities and aim to be an outsider for the European spots. Mostly thanks to a coached that has deleted the installed conformism and hugged a crowd that needed someone to make them believe again in taking the next step in their process of refloating a project that has been too harmed in the last few years.
Nothing like a good dose of charisma from a passional coach that fits in perfectly with the demand that the fans at Mestalla have always indicted.
Main image: Edit José Manuel Calviño.