2003–04 Valencia CF season

During the 2003–04 Spanish football season, Valencia CF won the double of La Liga and the UEFA Cup. At the end of the season, manager Rafael Benítez left to manage English side Liverpool and was succeeded by former Chelsea, Fiorentina and Valencia manager Claudio Ranieri.

Valencia CF

2003–04 season
President	Jaume Orti
Manager	Rafael Benítez
Stadium	Mestalla Stadium
La Liga	1st
Copa del Rey	Quarter-finals
UEFA Cup	Winners
Top goalscorer	League: Mista (19) All: Mista (24)
Home colours Away colours

Valencia CF enjoyed a marvellous season by winning the La Liga and UEFA Cup double. The key players of the squad were Mista, Vicente Rodríguez, Francisco Rufete, David Albelda, Roberto Ayala, Fábio Aurélio, Amedeo Carboni and Mauricio Pellegrino. Valencia CF started the league well in the early season but slumped in the mid-season and later made a remarkable comeback (remontada) in April and May thanks to Real Madrid's several slips. Valencia CF were on course for their first-treble winning season, however, Valencia were eliminated by eventual Copa del Rey runners-up Real Madrid in the quarter-finals and thus denying them a season treble.

Overview

Competition	Record								Result	Top Scorer
	G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
La Liga	38	23	8	7	71	27	+44	060.53	Winners	Mista, 19
Copa del Rey	6	3	1	2	10	8	+2	050.00	Quarter-finals	Rubén Baraja, 3
UEFA Cup	13	10	2	1	20	5	+15	076.92	Winners	Mista, 5
Total	57	36	11	10	101	40	+61	063.16		Mista, 24

Squad

Squad at end of season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	ESP	Santiago Cañizares
2	DF	ARG	Mauricio Pellegrino
3	DF	BRA	Fábio Aurélio
4	DF	ARG	Roberto Ayala
5	DF	ESP	Carlos Marchena
6	MF	ESP	David Albelda
7	FW	BRA	Ricardo Oliveira
8	MF	ESP	Rubén Baraja
10	MF	ESP	Miguel Ángel Angulo
11	FW	ESP	Juan Sánchez
12	DF	ESP	Javier Garrido
13	GK	ESP	Andrés Palop
14	MF	ESP	Vicente
15	DF	ITA	Amedeo Carboni
16	MF	URU	Fabián Canobbio
17	DF	ESP	David Navarro

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
18	MF	ESP	Jorge López
19	MF	ESP	Francisco Rufete
20	FW	ESP	Mista
21	MF	ARG	Pablo Aimar
23	DF	ESP	Curro Torres
24	MF	ESP	Xisco
25	MF	MLI	Mohamed Sissoko
26	MF	ESP	Jaime Gavilán
28	GK	ESP	David Rangel
29	FW	ESP	Borja Criado
31	DF	ESP	Vicente Verdejo
33	GK	ESP	Jonathan
35	DF	PAR	Ángel Amarilla
36	DF	FRA	Jean-Félix Dorothée
38	MF	ESP	César Soriano
39	DF	ESP	Raúl Albiol

Transfers

In
Pos.	Name	from	Type
FW	Ricardo Oliveira	Santos FC	€3,50 million
MF	Jorge López	Villarreal CF	€4,00 million
MF	Mohamed Sissoko	AJ Auxerre	€1,00 million
MF	Xisco	Recreativo Huelva	loan ended
AM	Fabián Canobbio	CA Peñarol	Free
DF	Raul Albiol	Valencia B

Out
Pos.	Name	To	Type
FW	John Carew	AS Roma	loan
MF	Kily González	Internazionale	€2,5 million
FW	Salva	Málaga CF	loan
DF	Miroslav Đukić	CD Tenerife	Free
DF	Anthony Réveillère	Olympique Lyonnais	loan ended
DF	Jean-Félix Dorothée	Valencia B
MF	Dennis Șerban	Polideportivo Ejido	end of contract
MF	Gonzalo de los Santos	Atlético Madrid	loan
DF	Raul Albiol	Recreativo Huelva	loan

Competitions

La Liga

Main article: 2003–04 La Liga

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Valencia (C)	38	23	8	7	71	27	+44	77	Qualification for the Champions League group stage
2	Barcelona	38	21	9	8	63	39	+24	72
3	Deportivo La Coruña	38	21	8	9	60	34	+26	71	Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4	Real Madrid	38	21	7	10	72	54	+18	70
5	Athletic Bilbao	38	15	11	12	53	49	+4	56	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round

Source: LFP
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th head-to-head goals scored; 5th goal difference; 6th number of goals scored; 7th Fair-play points
(C) Champions

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H
Result	D	W	W	W	W	W	W	L	D	W	L	D	W	D	W	W	W	W	W	D	L	W	W	D	L	L	W	W	W	W	W	W	D	D	W	W	L	L
Position	10	7	4	3	1	1	1	3	3	1	2	3	1	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Updated to match(es) played on 2008-07-16. Source: LFP.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss;   = Leader, 2004–05 UEFA Champions League Group stage;   = 2004–05 UEFA Champions League Group stage;   = 2004–05 UEFA Champions League Qualifying round;   = 2004–05 UEFA Cup;   = 2004–05 Segunda División

Matches

All kickoff times are in CET/CEST.   Win   Draw   Loss

Valencia v Real Valladolid

30 August 2003 1	Valencia	1–1	Real Valladolid	Valencia
21:30	Aimar 76'		Sousa 20'	Stadium: Mestalla Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Rafael Ramírez Domínguez

Osasuna v Valencia

2 September 2003 2	Osasuna	0–1	Valencia	Pamplona
21:30			Baraja 50'	Stadium: El Sadar Attendance: 14,195 Referee: Julián Rodríguez Santiago

Valencia v Málaga

14 September 2003 3	Valencia	1–0	Málaga	Valencia
19:00	Marchena 43'			Stadium: Mestalla Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Alfonso Pérez Burrull

Atlético Madrid v Valencia

20 September 2003 4	Atlético Madrid	0–3	Valencia	Madrid
21:30			Vicente 67' Mista 75', 90'	Stadium: Vicente Calderón Attendance: 53,000 Referee: Fernando Carmona Méndez

Valencia v Real Madrid

27 September 2003 5	Valencia	2–0	Real Madrid	Valencia
21:30	Mista 4' Oliveira 71'			Stadium: Mestalla Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Xavier Moreno Delgado

Barcelona v Valencia

5 October 2003 6	Barcelona	0-1	Valencia	Barcelona
21:30			Oliveira 14'	Stadium: Camp Nou Attendance: 78,019 Referee: César Muñiz Fernández

Valencia v Espanyol

19 October 2003 7	Valencia	4–0	Espanyol	Valencia
17:30	Mista 7', 45' Baraja 44' Vicente 78'			Stadium: Mestalla Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Luis Medina Cantalejo

Deportivo La Coruña v Valencia

25 October 2003 8	Deportivo La Coruña	2-1	Valencia	A Coruña
21:30	Valerón 16' Tristán 80'		Mista 73'	Stadium: Riazor Attendance: 27,500 Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco

Valencia v Celta Vigo

29 October 2003 9	Valencia	2-2	Celta Vigo	Valencia
21:00	Aimar 41' Canobbio 68'		Berizzo 56' Jesuli 66'	Stadium: Mestalla Attendance: 48,000 Referee: Alfonso Pino Zamorano

Mallorca v Valencia

2 November 2003 10	Mallorca	0–5	Valencia	Palma
			Jorge López 2' (pen.) Oliveira 7', 45', 76' Xisco 88'	Stadium: Son Moix Attendance: 21,330 Referee: Eduardo Iturralde González

Valencia v Racing de Santander

9 November 2003 11	Valencia	1–2	Racing de Santander	Valencia
	Baraja 25'		Bodipo 23', 49'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Miguel Pérez Lasa

Murcia v Valencia

23 November 2003 12	Murcia	2–2	Valencia	Murcia
	Richi 38' Míchel 46'		Mista 12', 55'	Stadium: La Condomina Attendance: 12,800 Referee: Víctor Esquinas Torres

Valencia v Real Zaragoza

29 November 2003 13	Valencia	3–2	Real Zaragoza	Valencia
	Jorge López 19' Vicente 26' Aimar 44'		Villa 49' Cani 79'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Antonio Rubinos Pérez

Real Sociedad v Valencia

2 December 2003 14	Real Sociedad	0–0	Valencia	San Sebastián
				Stadium: Anoeta Attendance: 22,000 Referee: Evaristo Puentes Leira

Valencia v Athletic Bilbao

7 December 2003 15	Valencia	2–1	Athletic Bilbao	Valencia
	Vicente 17', 64'		Ezquerro 52'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Arturo Daudén Ibáñez

Real Betis v Valencia

14 December 2003 16	Real Betis	0–1	Valencia	Seville
			Juanito 18' (o.g.)	Stadium: Manuel Ruiz de Lopera Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Fernando Teixeira Vitienes

Valencia v Sevilla

20 December 2003 17	Valencia	1–0	Sevilla	Valencia
	Mista 61'			Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 47,700 Referee: José Losantos Omar

Valencia v Villarreal

4 January 2004 18	Valencia	4–2	Villarreal	Valencia
	Baraja 60', 73' Aimar 61' Mista 87'		Riquelme 14' Belletti 77'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Pedro Tristante Oliva

Albacete v Valencia

10 January 2004 19	Albacete	0–1	Valencia	Albacete
			Jorge López 9' (pen.)	Stadium: Carlos Belmonte Attendance: 17,300 Referee: Javier Moreno Delgado

Valladolid v Valencia

17 January 2004 20	Valladolid	0–0	Valencia	Valladolid
				Stadium: José Zorrilla Attendance: 13,200 Referee: Bernardino González Vázquez

Valencia v Osasuna

25 January 2004 21	Valencia	0–1	Osasuna	Valencia
			Pellegrino 45' (o.g.)	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 47,700 Referee: Carlos Megía Dávila

Málaga v Valencia

31 January 2004 22	Málaga	1–6	Valencia	Málaga
	Salva 73'		Mista 5' Oliveira 15', 58', 65' Marchena 48' Albelda 72'	Stadium: La Rosaleda Attendance: 21,000 Referee: Eduardo Iturralde González

Valencia v Atlético Madrid

7 February 2004 23	Valencia	3–0	Atlético Madrid	Valencia
19:30	Mista 30', 71' Vicente 66'			Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Javier Turienzo Álvarez

Real Madrid v Valencia

15 February 2004 24	Real Madrid	1–1	Valencia	Madrid
21:00	Figo 90' (pen.)		Ayala 74'	Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu Attendance: 78,000 Referee: Pedro Tristante Oliva

Valencia v Barcelona

21 February 2004 25	Valencia	0–1	Barcelona	Valencia
21:30			Gerard 77'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 53,000 Referee: Antonio Rubinos Pérez

Espanyol v Valencia

29 February 2004 26	Espanyol	2–1	Valencia	Barcelona
	Tamudo 39', 75'		Mista 77'	Stadium: Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys Attendance: 18,900 Referee: Manuel Mejuto González

Valencia v Deportivo de La Coruña

6 March 2004 27	Valencia	3–0	Deportivo de La Coruña	Valencia
	Vicente 22' (pen.), 90' Sánchez 90'			Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 52,000 Referee: José Pedro Mendoza Castellano

Celta de Vigo v Valencia

14 March 2004 28	Celta de Vigo	0–2	Valencia	Vigo
			Rufete 39', 89'	Stadium: Estadio Balaídos Attendance: 25,076 Referee: Rafael Ramírez Domínguez

Valencia v Mallorca

21 March 2004 29	Valencia	5–1	Mallorca	Valencia
	Mista 44', 67', 68' Baraja 56' Angulo 60'		Eto'o 83' (pen.)	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 47,700 Referee: Jesús Téllez Sánchez

Racing de Santander v Valencia

28 March 2004 30	Racing de Santander	0–3	Valencia	Santander
			Díaz 8' (o.g.) Vicente 45', 75'	Stadium: El Sardinero Attendance: 13,781 Referee: César Muñiz Fernández

Valencia v Murcia

4 April 2004 31	Valencia	2–0	Murcia	Valencia
	Pellegrino 72' Mista 82'			Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco

Real Zaragoza v Valencia

11 April 2004 32	Real Zaragoza	0–1	Valencia	Zaragoza
			Angulo 69'	Stadium: La Romareda Attendance: 35,000 Referee: Alfonso Pérez Burrull

Valencia v Real Sociedad

18 April 2004 33	Valencia	2–2	Real Sociedad	Valencia
	Vicente 71' Mista 86'		Alonso 65' Karpin 69' (pen.)	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 53,000 Referee: Fernando Teixeira Vitienes

Athletic Bilbao v Valencia

25 April 2004 34	Athletic Bilbao	1–1	Valencia	Bilbao
	del Horno 30'		Jorge López 12' (pen.)	Stadium: San Mamés Attendance: 36,000 Referee: Javier Turienzo Álvarez

Valencia v Real Betis

2 May 2004 35	Valencia	2–0	Real Betis	Valencia
	Torres 35' Baraja 48'			Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Bernardino González Vázquez

Sevilla v Valencia

9 May 2004 36	Sevilla	0–2	Valencia	Seville
			Vicente 11' Baraja 90'	Stadium: Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Evaristo Puentes Leira

Villarreal v Valencia

14 May 2004 37	Villarreal	2–1	Valencia	Villarreal
	Anderson 13' Riquelme 25'		Pellegrino 35'	Stadium: El Madrigal Attendance: 11,256 Referee: Luis Medina Cantalejo

Valencia v Albacete

23 May 2004 38	Valencia	0–1	Albacete	Valencia
			Aranda 60'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Manuel Mejuto González

Copa del Rey

Main article: 2003–04 Copa del Rey

CD Castellón v Valencia

22 October 2003 Round of 64	CD Castellón	1–3	Valencia	Castellón de la Plana, Valencia
	Marcos 39'		Baraja 63', 81' Canobbio 86'	Stadium: Nou Estadi Castàlia Referee: Jesús Téllez Sánchez

Valencia v Murcia

17 December 2003 Round of 32	Valencia	2–0	Murcia	Valencia
	Xisco 12' Garrido 69'			Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Rafael Ramírez Domínguez

Valencia v Osasuna

7 January 2004 Round of 16, First Leg	Valencia	2–2	Osasuna	Valencia
	Angulo 26' Baraja 53' (pen.)		Webó 59' Aloisi 89'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 23,000 Referee: Antonio Rubinos Pérez

Osasuna v Valencia

14 January 2004 Round of 16, Second Leg	Osasuna	0–2 (2–4 agg.)	Valencia	Pamplona
			Vicente 26' Rufete 59'	Stadium: El Sadar Attendance: 14,103 Referee: Miguel Pérez Lasa

Quarterfinals

Real Madrid v Valencia

21 January 2004	Real Madrid	3-0	Valencia	Madrid
	Raúl 31' Ronaldo 81' Figo 86' (pen.)	(Report)		Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu Attendance: 65,000 Referee: Luis Medina Cantalejo

Valencia v Real Madrid

28 January 2004	Valencia	1–2 (1–5 agg.)	Real Madrid	Valencia
	Xisco 73'	(Report)	Raúl 14' Zidane 90'	Stadium: Mestalla Stadium Attendance: 42,000 Referee: Fernando Carmona Méndez

UEFA Cup

Main article: 2003–04 UEFA Cup

First round

AIK v Valencia

24 September 2003	AIK	0–1	Valencia	Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm
20:30		Report	Oliveira 64'	Attendance: 25,433 Referee: Hermann Albrecht (Germany)

Valencia v AIK

15 October 2003	Valencia	1–0 (2–0 agg.)	AIK	Mestalla Stadium, Valencia
21:45	Mista 71'	Report		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Johan Verbist (Belgium)

Second round

Valencia v Maccabi Haifa

6 November 2003	Valencia	0–0	Maccabi Haifa	Mestalla Stadium, Valencia
22:00		Report		Referee: Kenny Clark (Scotland)

Maccabi Haifa v Valencia

11 December 2003	Maccabi Haifa	0–4 (0–4 agg.)	Valencia	Sparta Stadion, Rotterdam
20:00		Report	Mista 11' Baraja 24' Albelda 90+1' Angulo 90+2'	Referee: Eric Braamhaar (Netherlands)

Third round

Valencia v Beşiktaş

26 February 2004	Valencia	3–2	Beşiktaş	Mestalla Stadium, Valencia
21:30	Sissoko 25' Canobbio 43' Navarro 90+4'	Report	Pancu 17', 39'	Referee: Alain Sars (France)

Beşiktaş v Valencia

3 March 2004	Beşiktaş	0–2 (2–5 agg.)	Valencia	BJK İnönü Stadium, Istanbul
19:30		Report	Angulo 12' Juan Sánchez 57'	Referee: Domenico Messina (Italy)

Fourth round

Gençlerbirliği v Valencia

11 March 2004	Gençlerbirliği	1–0	Valencia	Ankara 19 Mayıs Stadium, Ankara
19:30	Daems 12' (pen.)	Report		Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Tom Henning Øvrebø (Norway)

Valencia v Gençlerbirliği

25 March 2004	Valencia	2–0 (a.e.t.) (2–1 agg.)	Gençlerbirliği	Mestalla Stadium, Valencia
21:30	Mista 63' Vicente  94'	Report		Attendance: 30,000 Referee: René Temmink (Netherlands)

Quarter-final

Bordeaux v Valencia

8 April 2004	Bordeaux	1–2	Valencia	Stade Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux
19:15	Riera 18'	Report	Baraja 75' Rufete 88'	Attendance: 29,108 Referee: Mike Riley (England)

Valencia v Bordeaux

14 April 2004	Valencia	2–1 (4–2 agg.)	Bordeaux	Mestalla Stadium, Valencia
21:45	Pellegrino 52' Rufete 60'	Report	Eduardo 71'	Attendance: 32,000 Referee: Herbert Fandel (Germany)

Semi-final

Villarreal v Valencia

22 April 2004	Villarreal	0–0	Valencia	Estadio El Madrigal, Villarreal
21:45		Report		Attendance: 23,000 Referee: Lucílio Batista (Portugal)

Valencia v Villarreal

6 May 2004	Valencia	1–0 (1–0 agg.)	Villarreal	Mestalla Stadium, Valencia
21:45	Mista 16' (pen.)	Report		Attendance: 52,000 Referee: Terje Hauge (Norway)

Final

Main article: 2004 UEFA Cup Final

Valencia v Marseille

19 May 2004	Valencia	2–0	Marseille	Ullevi, Gothenburg
20:45 CEST	Vicente 45' (pen.) Mista 58'	Report		Attendance: 39,000 Referee: Pierluigi Collina (Italy)

Statistics

Players statistics

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		La Liga		Copa del Rey		UEFA Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	ESP	Cañizares	44	-27	37	-25	0	0	7	-2
23	DF	GER	Curro Torres	39	1	28+1	1	1+1	0	7+1	0
4	DF	ARG	Ayala	45	1	30	1	5	0	10	0
5	DF	ESP	Marchena	44	2	28+3	2	4+1	0	6+2	0
15	DF	ITA	Carboni	48	0	33	0	3+1	0	10+1	0
18	MF	ESP	López	30	4	23+3	4	0+4	0	0	0
6	MF	ESP	Albelda	44	2	32+1	1	2+1	0	8	1
8	MF	ESP	Baraja	52	13	29+6	8	5+1	3	10+1	2
14	MF	ESP	Vicente	44	15	32+1	12	4	1	4+3	2
20	FW	ESP	Mista	46	24	29+4	19	3+1	0	6+3	5
7	FW	BRA	Oliveira	30	9	14+7	8	2+1	0	5+1	1
28	GK	ESP	Rangel	1	-2	1	-2	0	0	0	0
21	MF	ARG	Aimar	38	4	18+7	4	3+2	0	5+3	0
19	MF	ESP	Rufete	43	5	15+12	2	5	1	8+3	2
2	DF	ARG	Pellegrino	32	3	17+4	2	3	0	6+2	1
10	FW	ESP	Angulo	36	5	12+10	2	4+1	1	7+2	2
25	MF	MLI	Sissoko	34	1	9+12	0	3+1	0	7+2	1
12	DF	ESP	Garrido	31	2	13+2	0	6	1	9+1	1
24	MF	ESP	Xisco	33	3	5+17	1	1+2	2	6+2	0
17	DF	ESP	Navarro	20	1	7+5	0	2	0	6	1
16	MF	URU	Cannobio	23	3	3+8	1	2	1	6+4	1
11	FW	ESP	Sánchez	17	2	3+7	1	1	0	4+2	1
3	DF	BRA	Fábio Aurélio	4	0	0+2	0	0	0	0+2	0
13	GK	ESP	Palop	12	-11	0	0	6	-8	6	-3
26	MF	ESP	Gavilan
29	FW	ESP	Criado
31	DF	ESP	Verdejo
33	GK	ESP	Jonathan
35	DF	PAR	Amarilla
36	DF	FRA	Dorothée
38	MF	ESP	Soriano	1	0	0	0	1	0
39	DF	ESP	Albiol	2	0	0	0	0	0	0+2	0

• Source: https://www.bdfutbol.com/en/t/t2003-0436.html?tab=partits