Without Real Madrid’s win at Barcelona in Saturday’s classic, the Spanish league could now have a completely unexpected isolated leader. However, second place (with the same points as Real Madrid) is a huge achievement for Girona. An achievement worth mentioning, especially since the Catalan football team only reached La Liga two seasons ago and finished in 10th place last season.
Girona, which has only four appearances in the main Spanish league in its entire history, has a medium/long-term project that started taking shape in August 2017, when the club was bought in equal parts by City Football Group, the UAE investor consortium that owns Manchester City, and by Pere Guardiola, coach Pep Guardiola’s brother, chairman of the board.
By becoming a satellite of Manchester City, the Catalan club began to receive young promises and transformed itself into a kind of laboratory to train players who could one day make the jump to the English giant. A lot was also invested in infrastructure, especially in training centers and of course in recruitment.
In 2021, Michel, 47 years old, former player of Rayo Vallecano, was chosen to guide the team. In his first season he was promoted to the top level of Spanish football. Last season the club stabilized in the middle of the table, and now the club intervenes among the giants, at the top of the table, with some predicting that the club could challenge for a European place. In addition to the coach, the work of Quique Cárcel, the sporting director, has also been praised.
In the summer, Girona lost two of its best players: Oriol Romeu went to Barcelona and Santiago Bueno to Wolverhampton. But thanks to the professional structure of the City Group and the good professionals at the club, it was possible to put together a quality team to successfully tackle the 2023-2024 season.
Reinforcements were guaranteed, such as the Ukrainian striker Artem Dovbyk, the most expensive signing in Girona’s history (7.5 million euros), the Venezuelan midfielder Yangel Herrera (signed from Manchester City) and the Brazilian striker Savinho, on loan from Troyes, from France , another team that belongs to the City Group empire and is already one of the stars of the Catalan team. In addition, the Dutch defender Daley Blind, the Argentine goalkeeper Gazzaniga and Eric Garcia, on loan from Barcelona, arrived on a free transfer.
The best attack
The results are in sight. In eleven matches in the Spanish league, the team from the city halfway between Barcelona and the French border won nine, lost one (against Real Madrid) and drew another (against Real Sociedad). And he went on to an unthinkable six-round streak in which he always won.
Another interesting fact: Girona currently has, in addition to At. Madrid have the best attack in the Spanish league, with 25 goals in 11 games, an average of more than two goals per game. In the entire history of the Spanish First League, it was the only club, besides Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atlético de Madrid, Bétis and Espanyol, to achieve 28 points in the first eleven rounds.
“Having 28 points in eleven games is a dream we did not foresee. This leadership is somewhat anecdotal because it is not our goal. Our goal is maintenance because the club is growing. But of course we are proud of the position we are in, especially because we have already won everyone’s respect,” said coach Michel after Friday’s win against Celta, with a goal in return.
The team usually plays in a 4X3X3 and can switch to 4X2X3X1 or 4X1X4X1. It is a team that plays attacking, that likes to take control of the game, to have the ball, either through the attacking ability of the full-backs (Yan Couto/Arnau and Miguel Gutiérrez), or through the ability to get off balance. the attackers Savinho and Tsygankov, in a very attacking team.
According to Transfermarkt, a website specialized in the football market, Girona’s selection is valued at 161.10 million euros. A value that contrasts with the millionaire valuations of the biggest Spanish giants: Real Madrid is valued at 1.03 billion euros, Barcelona 862ME and Atlético Madrid 472ME.
Fire or not, there is still a long way to go in the championship, time will tell how far Girona’s fairy tale can go. But one thing is certain: last year the team had 19 points less than now.
Source: DN
