Danjuma responds to jeers: “The fans are sovereign”

“The fans are sovereign,” Arnaut Danjuma said after Valencia supporters jeered him during the 6-0 Copa win over Tavernes. The Dutch winger was met with whistles when he came on, a show of discontent that Javier Aguirre chose not to challenge.

Asked about the crowd’s reaction at Mestalla, the coach declined to criticise the supporters. “The fans are sovereign. They pay for their tickets, and I’m nobody to tell them whether that’s right or wrong. I heard them,” Aguirre acknowledged. He put the onus on the team and on his own performance, saying the situation would have to be turned around with “better performances”.

Danjuma is among the players regularly used by the coach. Aguirre had used the Copa fixture to give playing time to footballers with a less prominent role. That rotation did not prevent the jeers aimed at the winger when he entered, or change the coach’s view that the response must come on the pitch.

Aguirre also described the match as an opportunity for players who train every day but do not get many minutes. He stressed the value of competition within the squad and praised several young players, including Aimar, Aarón, Mayol, Iker Córdoba and Otorbi. The coach also said he hoped the team could find a way to get back on track in Liga.

The sporting context gives that call added weight. Valencia will look to the Copa del Rey for the confidence it needs to recover in Liga. Against Tavernes, who play in Lliga Comunitat, the Valencia side had the responsibility of avoiding an upset and progressing in the competition. For Tavernes, the match meant more than a cup tie: some of its players had spoken about their affection for Valencia and their dream of playing at Mestalla.

The match had been postponed following the railway accident in Toledo. Tavernes played as the home side at Mestalla because its municipal ground could not host a fixture of this kind. Valencia’s emphatic win secured progression, but the jeers directed at Danjuma gave the evening another talking point: the team and the player will have to respond through their performances.