Girona FC: A story that reconciles us with football

We are now in the 2016/17 season, Girona, with very recognisable players such as goalkeeper Bono, Pablo Maffeo, Mojica, Portu or an inspired Longo (who had the highest scoring season of his professional career) achieved promotion to the First Division after finishing the season in second place. Under the command of the ship, Pablo Machín, a coach who advocated good play, something cathedral-like for the Girona team since then.

In the engine room, Pere Pons, Álex Granell and Borja García formed a historic midfield that competed head to head with the best midfields in Europe. Many will be surprised, only true football fans remember that trident.

After consolidating their promotion in a very close Liga 1,2,3 (with teams like Levante, Getafe, Cádiz, Tenerife, Valladolid, Almería among others) they arrived with a bang in what was, at that time, the best league in the world for the first time in its history. Far from revolutions, the team that continued to be managed by Pablo Machín kept the bulk of the team and incorporated some young talent such as an early stage of Aleix García (on loan from City) or a Douglas Luiz who, despite being one of the great talents of the Premier League, did not manage to show his best level.

Girona arrived with little to lose and much to gain and, leaving aside a historic tenth place (in which a bad run at the end of the season knocked them out of the European spots), Machín's team became one of the most attractive teams to watch in all of Europe, with dynamic and combinative football that aroused the admiration of rivals and friends. There was a differentiating factor that year and it was that the best player in the history of Girona landed for the first time at the Club, scoring 21 essential goals, being, together with Portu, one of the main offensive spearheads.

Pablo Machín did not take long to receive offers and Sevilla signed him to their ranks. This weighed on the Catalan team, which, despite keeping the entire squad and not having any notable losses, was relegated with Eusebio Sacristán at the helm after a terrible end to the season in which they only earned 3 of the last 15 points.

It was time to reset in the Second Division. And it was not an easy road. In the first year, up to four coaches tried to turn things around, but after reaching the playoffs, Elche, who came in 'in extremis' with a goal from Pere Milla in the 96th minute, snatched promotion from them.

The following season they once again put together a competitive squad, incorporating players such as Yan Couto, Monchu and Sylla. With Francisco at the helm, they were unable to qualify for direct promotion and were once again eliminated in the promotion play-off.

With Michel in charge, in 2021/22 and a team in which players such as Stuani himself, Bustos, Pol Lozano, Álex Baena (his breakthrough year), a mature Aleix García who arrived after living adventures in Belgium, Romania and Eibar or the young Uruguayan defender Santi Bueno stood out, the Catalans entered the playoffs by very little, finishing tied with Oviedo (seventh in the table) on points. But that was their year, destiny was written. Girona had to return to the First Division.

In the first year they again achieved a commendable tenth place, with Roro Riquelme and Taty Castellanos standing out (who relegated Stuani to the bench, who averaged more than 20 goals in the Second Division), the arrival of Tsygankov at Christmas, an inspired Oriol Romeu, the explosion of Iván Martín and Arnau Martínez, the arrival of Miguel Gutiérrez and the great level of Santi Bueno.

With a clear project, Girona began the 2023/24 campaign by betting on the loan of an unknown Savinho, a Ukrainian goalscorer who had never managed big numbers before his last season at Dnipro, a Yangel Herrera who has been away from his best for some time or a pair of short centre-backs such as Blind and Eric García. Everything else is history, everyone knows that this Girona team will go down in the history of Spanish football.

As a curious detail, their kit for next season was leaked and it left no one indifferent, raising blisters among a large part of the fans. A problem that you can quickly fix with Ropa Futboleros, since here you can find the vintage shirt you are looking for.

Many try to take away the merit of this milestone because of the support of the City Group, anyone who knows the background of its players knows that the work comes from much higher up. In this increasingly artificial world of football, stories like that of Girona are what reconcile us with our passion.