DIEGO LÓPEZ: "The fans AND MY FAMILY have supported me a lot over the last few days. I want them to know that I appreciate it a lot"

Valencia CF's striker, Diego López, speaks to VCF Media after his surgery. An injury that took place during the game vs. UD Almería.

The ball was loose and the Almeria player stuck his arm out to gain momentum when fighting for it. Unfortunately it hit me in the face. To start with, it doesn't feel like much. When it first happened, I felt a strong 'crunch' inside. After that I felt a bit dizzy and didn't really know what was happening.

I hadn't had to undergo surgery before. I dealt with it fairly well. I didn't feel much pain. But on the day of the operation and the following hours -and the night after the operation- it was pretty uncomfortable and I couldn't sleep.

My recovery is going well. My eye was hurting on the day of the operation, but now the pain is fairly light. I've at least been able to come back here today and worked a little. I'm very happy about that.

Some of my teammates had a joke with me, or said that I looked more handsome. But they've all been really good. Everybody knows that we have a very united dressing room, like a family, and they've all written to me and sent me encouragement.

The fans have supported me a lot over the last few days, as have other people like my family. I want them to know that I appreciate it a lot. We'll stay calm this week and it depends on how I heal as to when I come back. It's delicate and I need to be right so that nothing moves out of place. We'll go day-by-day, week-by-week. I hope to be back soon, because I'd play on Saturday if I could. Obviously I can't do that, but I hope I can come back ahead of time.

I miss them more than they miss me, I'm sure. The team played well the other day. It was a very serious performance, and Las Palmas are a side who generate a lot of chances because of how they play. There are things to work on this week, in order to win on Saturday at Mestalla. We'll go game-by-game. Saturday will be a very tough game against Sevilla FC, who are in form. I hope the team can dedicate the win to me.