Valencia coach Pako Ayestaran has refuted the possibility of Shkodran Mustafi’s sale. Mustafi was left out of the starting line-up in Valencia’s La Liga opener against Las Palmas which raised doubts over his stay at the club. However, Ayestaran has clarified on the issue.
The German defender has been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League giants Arsenal as Arsene Wenger hopes to find a replacement for Per Mertesacker before the transfer window closes.
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Asked about Mustafi's future, Ayestaran told reporters: "Mustafi is not for sale and he will stay at VCF. The market is open and there are still possibilities."
Valencia have recently been visited with enquiries for a host of players including forward Paco Alcacer and defender Aymen Abdennour. However, Ayestaran clarified his stance on the sale of his players and expects forward Paco Alcacer to stay. Alcacer, who has been linked with Barcelona, thinks highly of the prospective move.
Ayestaran continued, "With Alcacer I can be as firm as with Mustafi, [club president] Lay Hoon already said it. The president has said in public that Alcacer and Mustafi are not for sale and I have to believe her."
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Valencia kick-started their La Liga campaign at the Mestalla by opening the scoring in the sixth minute, courtesy of Santi Mina’s strike. Although it didn’t turn out to be the perfect end result as their dream start couldn’t materialise. Las Palmas scored four goals via Marko Livaja, Jonathan Viera, and Kevin-Prince Boateng, before Santi Mina added his second of the game and was later denied a hat-trick.
During the 4-2 loss to Las Palmas, the coach seemingly observed his defence opening up too many times prompting him to introduce benched Mustafi, but it was probably too late. Speaking about the result and still optimistic of maintaining their desired level, Ayestaran further added, "I am sad and disappointed by the result but satisfied by the performance of the team, it is difficult to play better.
"Their [Las Palmas] effectiveness has been better than normal. The grade has been fairly good for the team, we had chances to win the match but we were not accurate. I want the team to have identity and that it is noticeable. I am very satisfied and convinced that if we are able to maintain this level and correct the mistakes then the team will be up there."
