Mendieta´s spin to raise Valencia spirits

Retired midfielder Gaizka Mendieta can lighten the mood of his former Valencia teammates after embarking on a new career.

Retired midfielder Gaizka Mendieta can lighten the mood of his former Valencia teammates after embarking on a new career.

Valencia lost the first-leg of their Champions League tie 2-1 at home against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday but Mendieta has the ability to cheer up the team as he has now become a DJ in London’s West End.

Mendieta has won 40 caps for Spain, scoring goals at Euro 2000 and the 2002 World Cup finals, and he likens his new occupation to his old one.

“When you’re on a pitch you have to make the decision where to run and where to pass the ball, when you’re in the club you have to decide in seconds what song you’re going to play next by looking at the behaviour of the crowd,” Mendieta said.

“When you pick a song that everyone in the club loves, and you see them going mad, you get a feeling that’s similar to when you score a goal.”

Valencia will be hoping they have that feeling a few times as they bid to overturn the one-goal deficit away at PSG on March 7.