After watching his new team fall to a 2-0 defeat against Atletico Madrid on Sunday, new Valencia coach Cesare Prandelli noted on Monday the need to bring realism to the Mestalla dugout.
He refused to talk about the winter transfer market, instead highlighting his desire to improve the players currently on Los Che's books.
"We're not living in fantasy," he replied when asked if he would install an attacking brand of football.
"The reality is that I must improve my players, who are, for me, the strongest in LaLiga.
"The objective is to work each day with the intention of making a true team.
"I want all my players to feel as if they are getting better.
"If we all think about the transfer market then we're making a mistake."
Throughout his press conference, the Italian was incredibly complimentary of the institution and of their ambitions, while he also revealed why he agreed to take a turn in the Valencia hotseat.
"I said yes to Valencia because I spoke with [sporting director Jesus Garcia Pitarch] and he explained to me that this is a very interesting project," the 59-year-old said.
"It is an honour to be at such a glorious club and we want to lift it up to its place in history.
"I'm optimistic about the project because there is an interesting technical base, there is a team with room for improvement and there is a mentality which wants to build something, so my job is to find the balance that is currently missing."
Asked to give specific short-term goals, the Italian was a little vaguer and did not set his team a concrete objective for the current season.
"The goal of the project is to return Valencia to the Champions League, but I don't know how long that will take," he told the room.
"It could take six months, one year or two years, but that is the objective of the project."
Tactically, Prandelli revealed an admiration for the Spanish style, but hinted that he would also install some ideas from elsewhere.
"The idea is to play as a group," he said.
"I like to have possession of the ball, but it is impossible to have it all the time."
The only negative issue that the new arrival raised during his introduction was his disappointment at the fact he could not bring his own goalkeeping coach, but he made sure to praise the current staff and to single out Sunday's penalty hero Diego Alves for acclamation.
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