Cathro bringing Scottish nous to Valencia

"A genius" and "a visionary", according to Valencia CF coach Nuno Espírito Santo, Ian Cathro is ensuring that new Real Sociedad de Fútbol boss David Moyes is not the only Scotsman in Spain's top division.

The 28-year-old came to Mestalla along with Nuno and his staff at the start of the season and is helping to revive the club, who are enduring a rare absence from European competition. The six-time Spanish champions are fifth in the Liga with 24 points from 13 games, yet Cathro is reluctant to describe the team's run of form as "success".

"We've done what was necessary, which was to bring people together to follow this idea of football that we're slowly building," he told UEFA.com. "Now we have to evolve naturally and run with it. When you stand inside the Mestalla you realise there needs to be Champions League matches there. Getting back into the Champions League is essential. Everyone at the club knows that."

Should he help Valencia achieve that mission, it will be another feather in Cathro's cap. He had originally planned to study physics or applied computing at university after a second knee ligament tear put paid to his dreams of a playing career, but instead became immersed in the world of coaching.

Cathro was just 16 when he set up his own academy in his home town, Dundee. "It began with just eight kids and a bag of balls I'd bought with my own pocket money," he explained. "I wanted to transmit a different type of preparation based on an individual player having the capacity to go anywhere, to be the best player in the world. I wanted everyone to feel and believe we were capable of going to the top, and to do that we required a broader, faster understanding of the game."

The fact that 12 of the 16 boys Cathro used to work with have since joined professional clubs is a testament to the coach's high standards and demands. Of all those former pupils, 18-year-old Ryan Gauld looks to be in the best position to go to the top: the attacking midfielder's sensational performances for Dundee United FC last season earned him a move to Sporting Club de Portugal in the summer.

Nuno Espírito Santo impressed at Rio Ave©AFP/Getty Images

Cathro himself made a huge step up in his career with a move to Portugal two years ago, when he linked up with Nuno at Rio Ave FC, the pair having met on a UEFA B licence course. The former FC Porto goalkeeper was eager to bring Cathro in as he made his first foray into management, and the Scot said he learned "five years of life lessons" in his first 12 months in Portugal. Despite average attendances of 1,800, Rio Ave finished sixth in the league in 2012/13, their best showing in 31 years, and the following season reached the final of the Portuguese Cup and League Cup.

That success prompted Valencia to take on Nuno and his staff in the summer, but while Cathro is enjoying his role as one of the coach's right-hand men, he ultimately sees himself as a stand-alone manager in the long term. "If you put time limits on these things then you're already conditioning your current work and creating a pressure for yourself," he explained. "There will be a moment in which the correct circumstances come together, but that's not today."