It’s been a fairy tale journey for FC Girona in La Liga. After being promoted to La Liga in 2022, they are now the table topper of the Spanish League and continuously winning against big names. Last night, Girona FC stunned Barcelona at Estadi Olímpic to regain the top spot in the standing.
Girona beat Barcelona by a stunning 4-2 margin and have gone three points clear of Real Madrid. On the other hand, this defeat left Barcelona in fourth place with seven points behind the table topper.
As it happened
As Camp Nou is under renovation, Estadi Olímpic has been the temporary home ground for Barcelona. However, Barcelona welcomed Girona FC last night, aiming to improve their position in the table. Barca boss Xavi Hernandez set up the team formation with 4-3-3, where Robert Lewandowski led the attack along with Joao Felix and Rafinha. On the other side, Girona boss Michel made a challenging decision as he played his team in an attacking 3-4-2-1 formation.
The match, however, started with both teams playing aggressive football from the beginning. But it was Girona who found the net first to stun the home side. In the 12th minute, Girona striker Artem Dovbyk scored a goal to put the visitors ahead of the match.
However, FC Barcelona took only seven minutes to find the equalizer. Robert Lewandowski found the leveler for Barcelona in the 19th minute. It was Lewandowski’s first goal since November after coming back from the injury.
After that, both teams created tons of chances. But Girona FC once again took the lead over the home side. Former Real Madrid player Miguel Gutierrez scored a stunner just before the half-time whistle. As a result, the first half ended in 2-1 to Girona.
Following the break, the home side had gone crazy to level the scoreline. But Girona FC showed their defensive solidity in this match as they didn’t allow Barca’s strikers inside their box. Moreover, Girona FC found the net once again as Valery Fernandez scored in the 80th minute to make the scoreline 3-1. The game was literally over for FC Barcelona, but the drama was yet to come.
Ilkay Gundogan, who joined Barcelona from Manchester City last summer, gave a lifeline by scoring a goal in the additional time (90+2 minutes). It seemed Barcelona could tie the game as they were very desperate for another goal.
However, Girona FC were very careful and did everything to get the full three points from this game. Girona sealed the game in the last minute of the additional time as Cristhian Stuani netted the ball in the 95th minute to win the crucial match. In the end, Girona FC regained the top spot by winning against Barcelona.
