The Valencia squad took to the streets on a bus parade on Sunday to celebrate their win over Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final.
Less than 24 hours after beating Barca 2-1 in Seville, Marcelino Garcia Toral’s victorious team showed off their trophy in front of fans in Valencia.
Thousands of supporters lined the streets to catch a glimpse of their heroes, before the bus arrived at the Mestalla, where a stage had been erected on the pitch.
Manager Marcelino was in tears on the stage while delivering a speech and his players jumped up and down as confetti rained from above.
Saturday’s win over Barca — which came courtesy of goals from Kevin Gameiro and Rodrigo saw Valencia claim their first trophy since 2008.
After the match on Saturday Marcelino called the win the “happiest day” of his career
“It’s the happiest day of my career. It’s the win. There is always a first final and a first win,” Marcelino told a news conference.
“I thank the players, the coaching staff, my family… Everyone has helped me become the happiest person in the world on a professional level.
“Last year was magnificent. We started this year badly – or not well, let’s say – because we were competing even when the results weren’t there. That suffering has given us this.
“The players gave me the opportunity to win this. The love and gratitude that we have is mutual.”
Marcelino was under pressure earlier in the season after Valencia claimed just one win from their opening 11 LaLiga games, but they recovered to finish fourth.
The 53-year-old was thankful to the club and his players after turning their season around.
“In moments of difficulty, the players showed their support for me. I was grateful for that and I’ll never forget it,” Marcelino said.
“It wasn’t easy for the club to place so much confidence in me, and it wasn’t easy to turn the situation around the way that we did.
“It’s been shown that I wasn’t so bad before, nor am I so good now.”
