Gary Neville in firing line as Valencia lose again

Thursday night’s Europa League exit was followed up by defeat at home to Celta Vigo last night as a horror season continued for Valencia, but both owner Peter Lim and coach Gary Neville could well continue in their current roles at the club next year.

Celta claimed a 2-0 win last night with goals from John Guidetti and Hugo Mallo.

On Thursday Valencia won 2-1 at home against Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League but bowed out on away goals.

As so often during his time in Spain so far, Neville blamed poor refereeing and bad luck after Bilbao striker Aritz Aduriz’s 76th minute goal at Mestalla made it 2-2 on aggregate at Mestalla, and meant Bilbao qualified on away goals.

“I never like to put a performance, or the elimination, down to a referee, but when he watches it back, he’ll be very disappointed,” Neville said about an apparent hand-ball seconds before Aduriz poked home the crucial away goal for Athletic.

“I think we could have won by four or five. You need a bit of luck in football.”

While Valencia have been unlucky in certain games, they have also had moments of good fortune. Poor decision- making on the field, on the bench, and in the boardroom, is more to blame for their current predicament.

The issues in defence go to the core of the club’s problem, with Singapore-based owner Lim having relied heavily on Portuguese super-agent Jorge Mendes after taking control two years ago.

Mendes masterminded the sale of Valencia’s 2014/15 player of the year Nicolas Otamendi to Man City for €45m last summer, and the spending of a combined €30m on Aymen Abdennour and Aderlan Santos as replacements.

Both Abdennour and Santos have been disasters — regularly at fault as the team have struggled to keep clean sheets all season.

Despite Lim spending more than €200m — much of it on Mendes clients — in less than two years, Valencia could well finish this season in the bottom half of La Liga for the first time since 1988.

They have suffered embarrassing Champions League and cup exits.

“Peter Lim, you have converted us into the laughingstock of Spanish football,” wrote Fernando Garcia Berlanga in Valencia-based Superdeporte on Friday.

“In any serious business, Neville would never have come but, having made the mistake, he’d have returned to his country weeks ago. Enough already.”

Neville was under pressure from the start as everyone knew he owed his appointment to his close personal links with Lim.

However his enthusiasm and evident commitment have impressed with many around Mestalla, despite the team’s poor results.

He is personally liked, but not highly rated as a coach.

Asked on Thursday about continuing beyond the end of his contract in June, Neville suggested he still wanted to repay the fan’s passions.

“I’m not closing the door for anything,” he said.

“I know the contract I was given, you know the contract I was given. I will work as hard as I can. I’ve come to love this city, this club, and the fire, passion, desire of the fans.”