Girona are playing for second place this weekend. The draw against Alavés and the defeat against Villarreal, together with the reaction of Barça, reduced the options of the team led by Míchel to be directly included in the Champions League. Míchel’s men have already secured a place in Europe’s top competition, but they want more. The continent awaits a ‘EuroGirona’ with strong points in its game, and also some points to improve.
The 3 strengths:
1
Style, dominance and punch
Girona has a strong style mark. He knows what he wants and how he wants it. Not for nothing, they have offered some of the best performances in the First Division this season. It had top footballers, but Míchel gave them an identity. It is the fourth team in passes attempted per game (520.28), surpassed only by Las Palmas, Barcelona and Madrid. There is a clear vocation to have a ball. And having players with good footing means that more than 88% of passes go to success. At Montilivi, you don’t pass the ball just to pass: the ‘blanc-i-vermells’ have more than 11.66 shots and an extraordinary effectiveness: almost 44% of shots on goal end in a goal. Villarreal, with an effectiveness of 37.58%, is next on the list of the most effective teams.
2
A solid team
There are well-worked and profiled teams that sink with little change. This is not the case with this Girona, who despite receiving blows continues to work hard until he achieves his goal. In fact, the Catalan team came back and won eight games in which it trailed. Another one of Bellingham’s and Vinicius’ Madrid comebacks in this League. The record for returns to the First Division is held by Mourinho’s Real Madrid, with nine returns in the 11-12 season. Girona have room to take the record between now and the end of the championship, although Míchel will surely prefer to insist on his impressive managerial advantages: Girona have only played three games and lost one of 20 where it started leading the scoreboard.
3
The disruption in Dovbyk
The Ukrainian giant, an apparent unknown in big football, is the leading scorer in the 23-24 League with 20 goals and has also provided seven assists. This places him as the player involved in the most goals in the championship, with 27 contributions. With an efficiency close to 48%, Dovbyk has had his best moments in front of opposing goals, with goals in five consecutive games. Only 20 players, who didn’t debut with Madrid or Barcelona, are have scored 20 goals or more in their debut season in the Liga. Some of these names are famous such as Bebeto, Forlán, Falcao, Vieri, Rivaldo, César Rodríguez, Kempes or Hasselbaink. Dovbyk already belongs to this elite club.
The weaknesses
1
A round without variants
This has happened many times when a team has a long year because it has a core that plays almost everything and there are not many variants on the bench to make rotations. Not everyone can have almost all positions duplicated in top-level footballers. That is a matter of Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Bayern, City and a few more. Girona were among the three teams to use the fewest players, with a total of 25. Only Mallorca, with 24, used fewer. This is also the team in the category that fielded the fewest starters in the eleven, a total of 19. Only 15 players, also last in the Liga with Rayo, completed a complete game. The bench players were on the field for 2,667 minutes, the lowest number in the Primera. For context, Atlético are at the other extreme with 4,396 minutes. Rotation should improve.
2
Need more power
Whether it’s because of the offensive vocation of the Catalan team or the lack of force, they throw a lot at Girona and that translates into chances and the chances translate into goals conceded. Only Almería and Villarreal (this fact is surprising) have shot more per game. They shot an average close to 12.53 shots on Míchel’s team, although they managed 4.64 shots on goal. Girona is a team that, in the face of adversity, responds with more goals and chases the comeback record, as this text already points out, but in Europe the street runner is synonymous with problems. Girona have kept a clean sheet in less than a third of their games, which means they have gone 11 games without a goal. To put into context, Real Madrid have left ‘zero’ in their goal on 20 occasions.
3
Edges go… and not back
Míchel’s bet with three center backs and Yan Couto on the right lane and Miguel Gutiérrez on the left has paid off, no doubt. Two long-distance full-backs who play as wingers and have offensive production that no attacker would envy. Between assists and goals, Yan Couto and Miguel Gutiérrez contribute more than half a goal per game. Every two games, both are guaranteed a goal, either by scoring or assisting. But it comes with danger in the form of danger for the Girona rearguard: Yan Couto is the second full-back in the Liga with the fewest defensive actions, with less than 10, surpassed only by the injured Alex Balde, while the former player of Madrid , As the fourth side with the fewest defensive matches, he won only 56%.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
