Arsenal are preparing for the clash with Girona in the Champions League
On Wednesday, Arsenal will take on Girona, a team whose rise through the Spanish football pyramid is a real football miracle. The Catalan club, which qualified for European competitions for the first time in its history, will be the last rival of the “gunners” in the group stage of the elite competition.
History of the club
Girona was founded in 1930, and five years later played for the first time in Segunda. It has struggled in the minor leagues for most of its history, and on two occasions in the 1980s and 1990s it was even relegated to the regional leagues.
The rise of the club began in 2008, when it returned to Segunda after almost half a century. After several unsuccessful attempts to win a place in the elite, in 2017 he finally reached La Liga as the runner-up of Segunda. After two seasons in the elite, elimination followed, but in 2022 they return with a victory over Tenerife in the play-off final.
Stadium
Girona plays its home matches at the Estadi Montilivi stadium, built in 1970. The capacity of the stadium is 14,624 seats, but due to the temporary stands, UEFA limited the number of spectators to less than 10,000.
The highest attendance was recorded in 2019, when 14,158 fans watched the duel against Real Madrid. The stadium has also hosted several international friendly matches, including two matches against Mexico in November 2022.
A dream season
Last season was historic for Girona – the club made the best start in history and even held the leading position in La Liga for seven rounds. Although they ended up behind Real Madrid and Barcelona, they managed to take third place, ahead of Atletico Madrid, and thus qualified for European competitions for the first time.
Coach
Mitchell, a former player of Rayo Vallecano, is sitting on the Girona bench. As a coach, he managed to introduce teams to La Liga three times – first Rayo Vallecano, then Huesca and finally Girona. His success last season earned him the award for the best coach in La Liga.
The team
Girona has several former Premier League footballers in its squad. Donnie van de Beek from Manchester United and Brian Hill from Tottenham arrived in the summer. Former Bournemouth striker Arnaut Danjuma and Oriol Romeu, former Southampton midfielder, have also been added.
The team also includes the experienced Daley Blind and former Tottenham goalkeeper Paulo Gasaniga, while left back Miguel Gutierrez, winner of Olympic gold with Spain, is leading among the young talents. The attack is led by the captain and top scorer in the club’s history, 38-year-old Christian Stuani.
This season’s form
Girona had a difficult start to the season, balancing between the domestic championship and the Champions League. After 11 rounds, they were only in 13th place, but in the last matches they improved their form and are now in eighth place.
In the Champions League, they did not manage to achieve a significant result, they were eliminated with six defeats in seven games, but they achieved a historic victory over Slovan from Bratislava with a score of 2:0.
On Wednesday, Arsenal will try to exploit the weaknesses of the Spanish team and secure passage to the next stage of the competition.
