Valencia look to keep last 16 hopes alive

Valencia go into Wednesday night's Champions League game with Belgian side Genk knowing that realistically they need to beat the minnows of the group to keep alive their hopes of qualifying for the last 16. 'Los Che' currently sit third in Group E on 5 points, 1 behind Bayer Leverkusen and 3 adrift of leaders Chelsea who meet each other at the same time in Germany. Valencia go to Chelsea for a final game showdown and will hope the London side can win in Germany which would see them go second if they beat Genk. The Belgians are facing their last throw of the dice regarding qualification, they have 2 points and could still go through if they were to clinch an unlikely victory on Spanish soil. The home team must pick themselves up after losing a bruising encounter 3-2 at home to Real Madrid on Saturday night. The defeat left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Valencians after a penalty appeal for a handball by Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain was turned down in the last minute. Valencia remain in third position, seven points adrift of Madrid and three behind Barcelona at the top of La Liga. While the repercussions of that decision have dominated the Spanish press since the game, Valencia's French defender Jeremy Mathieu is keen to switch his attention to Wednesday night. "The Madrid match is gone, now all we are thinking about is the Genk game because it is so important for our qualification from this group," he said. "The pitch will make things difficult, it will be heavy with so much rain, which may make it hard for us to play our normal game." Valencia coach Unai Emery agreed with those sentiments. "We will be prepared for Wednesday as it's very important for us, we have to lift ourselves after this game and concentrate on that one as soon as we can," he commented. Centre-forward Roberto Soldado will be looking to continue his good form, two goals against Madrid made it ten for the season for him in all competitions, including two in the Champions League. Soldado is currently the in-form domestic striker in the Spanish league, and is only behind Barca's Lionel Messi and Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo and Higuain in the top scorers table. Valencia will be without the influential Ever Banega who has featured in all Champions League matches to date, after the Argentinian midfielder strained knee ligaments in their crucial 3-1 win over Leverkusen in their previous Champions League clash. It is 29 years since Valencia last lost to a Belgian side when Anderlecht beat them 2-1 in the Uefa Cup in the 1982-83 season while Genk are looking for their first Champions League win at the group stage, though, they can take heart from their 1-1 draw at home to Chelsea in the previous match. In two previous visits to Spain the Belgians have failed to score after a 0-0 draw in Mallorca in the European Cup Winners Cup in 1998-99 and a 6-0 defeat in their only previous Champions League group appearance at Real Madrid in 2002-03. A 3-0 victory at the weekend over Westerlo will have left them in confident mood, the result leaving them in sixth place in the Belgian league. Genk forward Jelle Vossen scored in that game to take his tally to eight for the season and the Belgian international will be the main danger to Valencia's hopes on Wednesday.