LEGENDARY FORMER VALENCIA CF STRIKER ‘JUAN SÁNCHEZ’ (EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW)

A local lad, Juan Sánchez was born and bred in the town of Aldaia (near Valencia) and still lives there. He came through the ranks of VCF Academy and joined the first team in the 1992-93 season. During his playing days with Valencia CF, he won the Super Cup (1999-2000), La Liga (2001-02 and 2003-04), and the UEFA Cup (2003-04). He also got runners-up medals for the consecutive Champions League finals of 2000 and 2001. The trajectory of Valencia CF was unmatched in this period. Indeed, UEFA voted Valencia CF as ‘best team in the world’ in 2004. Due to his compact stature and quick-thinking in the box, his affectionate nickname at Mestalla was “El Romario d’Aldaia.” To this day, despite all the accolades, he remains a humble and approachable former player. He survived the terrible floods in his hometown and has lived to tell the tale. As an active volunteer, Juan has been getting stuck in and helping with the recovery in Aldaia too.

24/7 VALENCIA: Could you tell us what it has meant to be a Valencia player…

JUAN SÁNCHEZ: “Playing for Valencia was very satisfying and a reward for all the hard work that myself and also my family had put in over many years.”

You’ve spoken of Vicente Guillot’s influence on bringing you to Valencia – can you expand on that? “Guillot was the person who bet on me when I was just 12 years old; he made me go from playing in my ‘pueblo’ (village) team to Valencia. One day, he came to see the training session in Aldaia and he then decided that another teammate (Matias Rubio) and I would go to Valencia.”

That second spell with Valencia was a special time for the club, can you see them enjoying such a successful time again? “The time that I played at Valencia was actually the best in the history of the club, something very important for all the fans and for all the members of the club… at that time. Right now, in the short term, it is very difficult for that to happen again. Hopefully, in the not too distant future the club can enjoy great successes once again.”

Do you support the new stadium ‘Nou Mestalla’ – can that make a difference for the club? “Hopefully, soon there will be a new stadium; I think it will be important for the club.”

How did you find working with Rafa Benitez? Could you see him return to Spain? Is it a surprise he’s not working? “Rafa Benítez was very important for us; he improved all the players in our performance. With his ability and mentality we were able to achieve and win titles and trophies that few people, or almost nobody, thought we could actually win.”

What were your lowest and highest points at Valencia? “Without doubt, getting to consecutive Champions League finals and losing both of them was a very bitter pill to swallow. It was really hard. Having said that, we went on to win 2 Ligas and the UEFA Cup in the following years, which was very special. It was an historic time for the club, the fans and the players.”

You also played for Celta Vigo, is it still a special club for you? “Yes. Celta will always be important and special for me, I played 7 years there, I arrived very young and they gave me the possibility to get experience in the first division. I experienced very special moments; I have a great affection for its people and the city of Vigo. Also, my eldest daughter (Paula) was born there.”

You played with Claude Makelele at Celta Vigo. At the time, could you see him making the impact on football as he did with Real Madrid and Chelsea? “When Makelele arrived, he surprised us immediately. A great footballer with spectacular abilities too. He had great physical power in defence, he ran and recovered countless balls and offensively he played with ease too. He was also a very good guy. At that time, it is true, we could not assess where he was going to play later on. He ended up having a really impressive career.”

What can you tell us about Iago Aspas? Where does he stand regarding Celta’s greatest players? “Iago Aspas is an impressive player in all aspects of a striker’s game, capable of winning games by himself. Undoubtedly, he is the best striker I have seen in the history of Celta.”

After this exclusive interview took place, ‘LA DANA’ occurred. Juan Sánchez shared his personal experiences during this tragic event on L’Informatiu of VCF Radio…

JUAN SÁNCHEZ: “I was playing ‘padel’ and cards during the day and, around 6:00 p.m., I went home in Aldaia. It was very windy, but it wasn’t raining heavily. I stayed home, left the car in the garage, then went to a kiosk by the ravine to buy a lottery ticket, and then went back home to relax. Suddenly, I looked out the window and saw people moving their cars onto the pavement and roundabouts. I panicked and thought that water had already flooded the garage, but nothing had happened. I went out to the street, and people were uncertain because water was coming in from the next street. At some point, someone suggested we move our cars to the edge of town where it was higher, so I quickly took my car out. I managed to save it by making that quick decision. I had left my phone at home, and when I tried to go back, water was already halfway down the street, so I forgot about the phone. Feeling fearful, I headed toward Mislata and took the A-3 road to get there. There in Mislata, nothing was happening regarding any floods. I spent the night there and called my daughters, who were in Madrid, from my girlfriend’s phone. The next day, I walked back home to Aldaia and it looked like an earthquake or a war had struck. It was terrible.”

“My parents are okay; they live on the third floor. My brother has a painting business and lost several vans, as well as the space where he kept all his materials and a cousin lost both of her cars. These are material losses that still impact your life, although it doesn’t compare to the loss of life, but it’s still important.”

“We’re trying, little by little, to help the town return to normal. It’s been really hard, but slowly we’re seeing progress. Since yesterday, there’s been a lot more people around, large machinery removing cars, belongings, and whatever people had in their homes. There are more police and military personnel… people had been waiting for them since Thursday of last week. They arrived late—it could have been done much earlier; they took many days, and a lot of garages were still flooded. It’s a complete disaster. Day after day, being here with everyone is awful, like a nightmare.”

“We’ve felt a lot of love from so many people, from Valencia and beyond. We would have liked more support from the relevant authorities from the beginning, with police, military, firefighters… there were so many streets with many elderly people living on ground floors… those in charge should have realized how severe this catastrophe was. Action should have been taken from the very start.”

“We’ve really felt the warmth and support from everyone. It was moving to be in the town and see the number of people who walked all the way from Valencia and other towns to help. We welcomed them with open arms. That help saved many lives. But I’ll say again, we would have liked for the seriousness of the situation to have been recognized from day one, so that the damage could have been reduced.”

Interview by Will McCarthy