The Catalan club will play in the top UEFA competition next term, just three seasons after they were playing at LALIGA HYPERMOTION level.
SPAIN: Girona FC is a Champions League team. And, for most fans of Los Blanquivermells, it still hasn’t sunk in yet that the biggest clubs from across Europe will be visiting the Estadi Montilivi next season. Not only has the club qualified for Europe for the first time in their 94-year history, but they’ve done so at the highest level of UEFA competition.
By putting on a show in the second half against FC Barcelona on Saturday, defeating their regional neighbors 4-2 for the second time this season, Míchel’s side have achieved an objective that they only set mid-way through the season. Even when they started with six wins and one draw from their first seven matches of the season, the coach kept insisting that the primary objective was avoiding relegation. Only in January did he admit that making it into Europe had become a target too.
After the achievement was confirmed on Saturday, the coach spoke to the media about how much this means to the club, stating: “What we have achieved this year is incredible. It’s historic. It’s a wonderful thing. The project is great. We’ve been able to work and grow day by day. We’ve been working in a calm yet demanding way and with a squad of players who want to grow. That’s how we’ve gone from the second tier to the Champions League, and deservedly so. I hope everyone enjoys it.”
The fans certainly did enjoy it, with 14,000 celebrating the victory in the stands of the Estadi Montilivi and many more taking to the streets of the city center on Saturday night to rejoice on arguably the greatest night in Girona FC’s history.
From LALIGA HYPERMOTION in 2021/22 to the Champions League in 2024/25
As Míchel pointed out during his speech, it wasn’t all that long ago that this was a team in the second division. It was only in 2021/22 that Los Blanquivermells finished sixth in LALIGA HYPERMOTION under Míchel and achieved promotion through the playoffs. Playing an ambitious and direct brand of football, they then took LALIGA EA SPORTS by storm last season before ultimately finishing 10th, matching the club’s previous highest finish in the top tier.
Then, in 2023/24, Girona FC stepped up and reached the next level. The spine of the team remained the same, with the likes of Paulo Gazzaniga, David López, Aleix García, and Yangel Herrera. But, the new additions significantly improved the squad, even at a low cost.
In central defense, the veteran Daley Blind arrived on a free transfer to bring his experience to the back line, while Eric García arrived on loan from FC Barcelona to add another skilled passer at the back.
In midfield, the low-cost signings of Iván Martín and Portu proved to be extremely astute, as both players could play in several different positions in the middle and could get forward in attack, with Martín scoring five goals and Portu seven, including two in the win against Barça.
Then, there was the arrival of Artem Dovbyk, arguably the best transfer in all of LALIGA EA SPORTS last summer when looking at value for money. The Ukrainian striker has reached 20 goals and is the division’s top scorer, and has made everyone forget about the departure of Taty Castellanos, the Catalan side’s top scorer last season. With the Brazilian winger Sávio also coming in last summer, scoring eight goals and assisting nine alongside Dovbyk in attack, Girona FC’s summer 2023 recruitment was something special, and sporting director Quique Cárcel deserves every bit of praise.
Coach Míchel also deserves to bask in the glory of this masterpiece, as he has not only built a successful team but he has built an entertaining one too. Girona FC is scoring 2.15 goals per game this season and always plays on the front foot. This hasn’t been achieved by any sort of rigid system, as Míchel has used many different formations throughout the season, from a 4-1-4-1 to a 4-2-3-1 to a 3-4-3. Even with Girona FC having suffered many injuries along the way, the tactician has been flexible and has adapted, always finding solutions and achieving positive results.
At home, they’ve been particularly impressive and have won 14, drawn two, and lost one from their 17 games so far at the Estadi Montilivi, scoring 46 goals too, which is the most of any home side in the competition. The Girona FC faithful have had a lot to cheer about, then, and the biggest cheers of all came at full-time on Saturday when this modest club became a Champions League team for the first time.
