Guillem Balague: 'Gary Neville has to beat Espanyol'

Respected Spanish journalist Guillem Balague has claimed that Valencia supporters will "want action" if their team lose at home to Espanyol in La Liga this weekend.

Los Che boss Gary Neville has been forced to deny rumours that he will be relieved of his duties as head coach on Saturday if he fails to lead his team to all three points against relegation-threatened Espanyol.

Balague does not believe that the England assistant manager will necessarily be sacked if defeat were to occur at the Mestalla, but has said that there "could be mayhem" with the supporters.

"If Valencia lose, it's going to be a disaster. They will really want action after a defeat. Forget about the Copa del Rey attendance; the stadium will be full and the fans will give the players full vocal support - until minute 90," Balague told Sky Sports News.

"But if they lose it could be mayhem. They're really upset. They're saying things like the club is not going in the right direction, Gary Neville is not the right man. They will want action if there's a defeat."

Neville has not taken three points from any of his nine league games in charge of the former Spanish champions.