In the last corner, about to face the finish line, it seems that the Girona’s engine is beginning to show signs of exhaustion. Míchel’s men traveled to the Bernabéu less than a month ago all grown up, undefeated at home, and have had three consecutive defeats away from Montilivi since then. The last one came this Sunday in a stadium that is growing like the Girona’s great jinx. In Son Moix, where they were already eliminated from the Cup, they wasted a unique opportunity to add a little spice to the League. But, instead of closing the gap with Madrid, they moved one point further away after an exercise in impotence against a rocky Mallorca, barely lit up in the final minutes when the match broke down.
There was no better image to summarize Girona’s fade to black in the first half than the one that Míchel starred in on the stroke of half-time. Completely desperate, without finding solutions, the Madrid coach angrily protested a decision to the referee and from so much impetus that he put into his gestures he slipped and fell to the ground. As a reward, he saw a yellow.
It didn’t take long for Mallorca to show that the historic qualification for the Copa del Rey final was going to be another incentive to measure forces with the revelation team of the League, that there was going to be little hangover. In the first corner, Gazzaniga already began to sweat, a preview of what would come later. There are few slates in Spain like that of Javier Aguirre, who turned the set piece into a powerful weapon on the island.
Miguel Gutiérrez connected with Iván Martín, who finished with pleasure but very focused, without problems for Rajkovic, turning the action into an oasis in the middle of the football desert. Because all the danger was in the Girona area, which had a hard time crossing the midfield line in the face of the overwhelming and precise Mallorcan pressure. The physical display of the locals was a spectacle just a few days after an entire cup semi-final.
The work was piling up for Gazzaniga, who teamed up with the crossbar to clear a poisoned center from Gio González. Muriqi was also not successful with his Vaseline when more than one was already scoring the first goal of the game. There were no ideas in Girona against a superior rival, who compensated for the gaps in quality with attitude and desire. Aguirre’s team also chained one corner after another, until after half an hour Copete scored for Son Moix for the first time. It was a scam. There was a rebound, a shot and a rebound from Larin that fell at the center back’s feet with the rival defense completely out of position. His shot was unappealable. The goal was delayed due to a possible handball by Larin but he ended up going up to the light.
The goal woke up Míchel’s team a little, but it was not the afternoon for great boasts and just a very deflected shot from Savio and a weak shot from Solís were their loot before heading to the locker room.
The start of the second half was not very encouraging, with the parameters of the match unchanged. An arrival from Larin that Juanpe deflected turned into another corner, which this time Raíllo finished too high. The afternoon seemed like a nightmare for a Girona team that had no spark to face the final third of the field, one of its strong points throughout the season.
An innocent shot by Solís, who did not even come close to fulfilling his role as a substitute for Yangel Herrera, broke up the match, which in the last half hour became a kind of street race that allowed us to appreciate a somewhat more recognizable Girona. Portu’s entry into the field helped in that sense. The duel opened wide, the opportunities followed. Savio headed high and Abdón Prats got tired of trying to shoot from any position. Portu shot high on one of the clearest chances, although it was Savio who really came close to equalizing but his shot was deflected by Copete, the local hero, into a corner. A last shot from Couto was the last bullet for Míchel’s team, who are moving away from Real Madrid and continue to lose steam.
1 – Mallorca: Rajkovic; Gio Gonzalez, Raillo, Valjent (Nacho Vidal, min. 54), Copete, Lato; Sanchez (Morlanes, 54 mins), Mascarell, Dani Rodriguez (Darder, 68 mins); Larin (Abdon, min. 68)and Muriqi.
0 – Girona: Gazzaniga; Yan Couto, Eric García, Juanpe, Miguel; Aleix García, Solís (Stuani, min. 78), Iván Martín (Portu, min. 55); Savinho, Tsygankov and Dovbyk.
Goal: 1-0, min.32: Copete.
Referee: Hernández Maeso (Extremeño Committee). He cautioned Valjent (min. 37), Lato (min. 58), Mascarell (min. 74), Abdón Prats (min. 76) and Sergi Darder (min. 93).
Incidents: Match corresponding to the twenty-seventh day of LaLiga EA Sports played at the Son Moix stadium in front of 17,769 spectators.
