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Former Arsenal Defender Gabriel Paulista Struggles To Fight Back Tears In Emotional Interview

Former Arsenal Defender Gabriel Paulista Struggles To Fight Back Tears In Emotional Interview

Valencia are currently 14th in La Liga, only six points off the relegation zone.

Josh Lawless

Josh Lawless

Former Arsenal defender Gabriel Paulista struggled to fight back tears after Valencia suffered a dismal 3-0 loss to Getafe last night.

Goals from Mauro Arambarri, Jaime Mata and Carlos Alena inflicted Los Che's tenth league defeat of the season and leaves them lurking dangerously to the relegation zone.

Valencia are 14th in La Liga, with just six points separating them from Real Valladolid in the final relegation spot.

It's a massive fall from grace from a side who are two-time runners up in the Champions League and famously won a La Liga and UEFA Cup double under Rafa Benitez in 2003/04.

And when asked about the club being in a relegation battle as opposed to competing for the Champions League places, it proved too much for Gabriel in his post-match interview.

His eyes watering as he became visibly emotional, the Brazilian told Movistar Plus: "Hearing that is terrible, when you consider how big a club Valencia are and then to hear (about potential relegation) is awful.

"But we're going to turn this around, we have many games left and we're going to improve and return Valencia where they deserve to be."

The interviewer wished Gabriel well for the rest of the season but he still had tears in his eyes afterwards and was consoled by the club's press officer.

Image: PA
Image: PA

Formerly of Villarreal, the 30-year-old joined Valencia from Arsenal in 2017 and helped them win the Copa Del Rey in 2019.

Manager Javi Garcia, having offered his resignation in October, has seen his side pick up just three wins from their last 16 games in the league.

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Topics: valencia, Football, La Liga