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Just seventeen years ago, Girona were in the Spanish Tercera Division. Fast forward 18 years, and the once-minnows of Catalonia have made their bow on European club football’s biggest stage; but they are not here to simply make up the numbers. Parisian and Rotterdam-shaped lightning struck the Albirrojos on Matchdays one and two, but as coach Míchel explains here, the significance of playing in the Champions League is not lost on his side whatsoever, with the team determined to turn things around.
We will ignore these past two results and focus on what we have done well, on how we can improve as a team and how to get that flow while trying to avoid tiny mistakes that penalise us so much. This is the path to follow. I always tell my players that every play affects both me and the team. If I just try to avoid making a mistake so that I don’t receive any negativity, I’m making the team perform worse.
It’s something I must learn because I am used to training a lot on a daily basis, but now we have more matches and fewer training sessions, so my work dynamic has completely changed. I’m still getting used to it. I must convince my players that there were very good moments in Paris – because even if we suffered, we competed really well – and our team deserved much more against Feyenoord. Do we still have options to keep going in the Champions League? Yes, we do. Are we going to focus on improving our level of performance? Yes, we are.
Well, one of my pillars as a manager is to look for the opposition’s goal; to play direct. From here, you have to be protagonists with the ball. We have to create mechanisms for the player to feel like he can dominate these situations, and I talk a lot about how I can make my team-mate better on the pitch. We talk a lot about the time and space that a player has on the ball and the passing options. I work a lot on this: the capacity that a player has when he receives the ball. These mechanisms have to be worked on heavily, and you need time, but you need the player to have enough personality to do things or undertake concepts.
Just seventeen years ago, Girona were in the Spanish Tercera Division. Fast forward 18 years, and the once-minnows of Catalonia have made their bow on European club football’s biggest stage; but they are not here to simply make up the numbers. Parisian and Rotterdam-shaped lightning struck the Albirrojos on Matchdays one and two, but as coach Míchel explains here, the significance of playing in the Champions League is not lost on his side whatsoever, with the team determined to turn things around.
We will ignore these past two results and focus on what we have done well, on how we can improve as a team and how to get that flow while trying to avoid tiny mistakes that penalise us so much. This is the path to follow. I always tell my players that every play affects both me and the team. If I just try to avoid making a mistake so that I don’t receive any negativity, I’m making the team perform worse.
It’s something I must learn because I am used to training a lot on a daily basis, but now we have more matches and fewer training sessions, so my work dynamic has completely changed. I’m still getting used to it. I must convince my players that there were very good moments in Paris – because even if we suffered, we competed really well – and our team deserved much more against Feyenoord. Do we still have options to keep going in the Champions League? Yes, we do. Are we going to focus on improving our level of performance? Yes, we are.
Well, one of my pillars as a manager is to look for the opposition’s goal; to play direct. From here, you have to be protagonists with the ball. We have to create mechanisms for the player to feel like he can dominate these situations, and I talk a lot about how I can make my team-mate better on the pitch. We talk a lot about the time and space that a player has on the ball and the passing options. I work a lot on this: the capacity that a player has when he receives the ball. These mechanisms have to be worked on heavily, and you need time, but you need the player to have enough personality to do things or undertake concepts.
Here, there is a quote that says: “Pal de paller” [in this context, roughly translates to ‘nucleus’]. It means Stu is very important for the team. On the pitch, he provides us with plenty of goals, but within the team dynamic and in the dressing room, he is a leader for everyone, even for me. He has been able to make everyone respect the club because he respected Girona during one of its toughest moments when they were relegated to the Segunda División. Throughout Girona’s history, there have been many important players. However, Cristhian Stuani will be the name everyone will be talking about in a couple of years.
It was incredible. A dream come true. I get goosebumps reminiscing about last season. Some moments were extremely joyful for us. For example, we had a great game against Villarreal away from home, we got the victory and went top of the league. When we defeated Barcelona 4-2 in Montjuïc, we did something special. The whole world was talking about that game, and then, something really important happened: we were recognised by the football community. All the fans from other stadiums and cities acknowledged how well Girona played. You can’t achieve that only by winning games. It’s not just about winning, and that’s something that made me feel proud of my team.
Just seventeen years ago, Girona were in the Spanish Tercera Division. Fast forward 18 years, and the once-minnows of Catalonia have made their bow on European club football’s biggest stage; but they are not here to simply make up the numbers. Parisian and Rotterdam-shaped lightning struck the Albirrojos on Matchdays one and two, but as coach Míchel explains here, the significance of playing in the Champions League is not lost on his side whatsoever, with the team determined to turn things around.
We will ignore these past two results and focus on what we have done well, on how we can improve as a team and how to get that flow while trying to avoid tiny mistakes that penalise us so much. This is the path to follow. I always tell my players that every play affects both me and the team. If I just try to avoid making a mistake so that I don’t receive any negativity, I’m making the team perform worse.
It’s something I must learn because I am used to training a lot on a daily basis, but now we have more matches and fewer training sessions, so my work dynamic has completely changed. I’m still getting used to it. I must convince my players that there were very good moments in Paris – because even if we suffered, we competed really well – and our team deserved much more against Feyenoord. Do we still have options to keep going in the Champions League? Yes, we do. Are we going to focus on improving our level of performance? Yes, we are.
Well, one of my pillars as a manager is to look for the opposition’s goal; to play direct. From here, you have to be protagonists with the ball. We have to create mechanisms for the player to feel like he can dominate these situations, and I talk a lot about how I can make my team-mate better on the pitch. We talk a lot about the time and space that a player has on the ball and the passing options. I work a lot on this: the capacity that a player has when he receives the ball. These mechanisms have to be worked on heavily, and you need time, but you need the player to have enough personality to do things or undertake concepts.
Just seventeen years ago, Girona were in the Spanish Tercera Division. Fast forward 18 years, and the once-minnows of Catalonia have made their bow on European club football’s biggest stage; but they are not here to simply make up the numbers. Parisian and Rotterdam-shaped lightning struck the Albirrojos on Matchdays one and two, but as coach Míchel explains here, the significance of playing in the Champions League is not lost on his side whatsoever, with the team determined to turn things around.
We will ignore these past two results and focus on what we have done well, on how we can improve as a team and how to get that flow while trying to avoid tiny mistakes that penalise us so much. This is the path to follow. I always tell my players that every play affects both me and the team. If I just try to avoid making a mistake so that I don’t receive any negativity, I’m making the team perform worse.
It’s something I must learn because I am used to training a lot on a daily basis, but now we have more matches and fewer training sessions, so my work dynamic has completely changed. I’m still getting used to it. I must convince my players that there were very good moments in Paris – because even if we suffered, we competed really well – and our team deserved much more against Feyenoord. Do we still have options to keep going in the Champions League? Yes, we do. Are we going to focus on improving our level of performance? Yes, we are.
Well, one of my pillars as a manager is to look for the opposition’s goal; to play direct. From here, you have to be protagonists with the ball. We have to create mechanisms for the player to feel like he can dominate these situations, and I talk a lot about how I can make my team-mate better on the pitch. We talk a lot about the time and space that a player has on the ball and the passing options. I work a lot on this: the capacity that a player has when he receives the ball. These mechanisms have to be worked on heavily, and you need time, but you need the player to have enough personality to do things or undertake concepts.
Just seventeen years ago, Girona were in the Spanish Tercera Division. Fast forward 18 years, and the once-minnows of Catalonia have made their bow on European club football’s biggest stage; but they are not here to simply make up the numbers. Parisian and Rotterdam-shaped lightning struck the Albirrojos on Matchdays one and two, but as coach Míchel explains here, the significance of playing in the Champions League is not lost on his side whatsoever, with the team determined to turn things around.
We will ignore these past two results and focus on what we have done well, on how we can improve as a team and how to get that flow while trying to avoid tiny mistakes that penalise us so much. This is the path to follow. I always tell my players that every play affects both me and the team. If I just try to avoid making a mistake so that I don’t receive any negativity, I’m making the team perform worse.
It’s something I must learn because I am used to training a lot on a daily basis, but now we have more matches and fewer training sessions, so my work dynamic has completely changed. I’m still getting used to it. I must convince my players that there were very good moments in Paris – because even if we suffered, we competed really well – and our team deserved much more against Feyenoord. Do we still have options to keep going in the Champions League? Yes, we do. Are we going to focus on improving our level of performance? Yes, we are.
Well, one of my pillars as a manager is to look for the opposition’s goal; to play direct. From here, you have to be protagonists with the ball. We have to create mechanisms for the player to feel like he can dominate these situations, and I talk a lot about how I can make my team-mate better on the pitch. We talk a lot about the time and space that a player has on the ball and the passing options. I work a lot on this: the capacity that a player has when he receives the ball. These mechanisms have to be worked on heavily, and you need time, but you need the player to have enough personality to do things or undertake concepts.
Here, there is a quote that says: “Pal de paller” [in this context, roughly translates to ‘nucleus’]. It means Stu is very important for the team. On the pitch, he provides us with plenty of goals, but within the team dynamic and in the dressing room, he is a leader for everyone, even for me. He has been able to make everyone respect the club because he respected Girona during one of its toughest moments when they were relegated to the Segunda División. Throughout Girona’s history, there have been many important players. However, Cristhian Stuani will be the name everyone will be talking about in a couple of years.
It was incredible. A dream come true. I get goosebumps reminiscing about last season. Some moments were extremely joyful for us. For example, we had a great game against Villarreal away from home, we got the victory and went top of the league. When we defeated Barcelona 4-2 in Montjuïc, we did something special. The whole world was talking about that game, and then, something really important happened: we were recognised by the football community. All the fans from other stadiums and cities acknowledged how well Girona played. You can’t achieve that only by winning games. It’s not just about winning, and that’s something that made me feel proud of my team.
Just seventeen years ago, Girona were in the Spanish Tercera Division. Fast forward 18 years, and the once-minnows of Catalonia have made their bow on European club football’s biggest stage; but they are not here to simply make up the numbers. Parisian and Rotterdam-shaped lightning struck the Albirrojos on Matchdays one and two, but as coach Míchel explains here, the significance of playing in the Champions League is not lost on his side whatsoever, with the team determined to turn things around.
We will ignore these past two results and focus on what we have done well, on how we can improve as a team and how to get that flow while trying to avoid tiny mistakes that penalise us so much. This is the path to follow. I always tell my players that every play affects both me and the team. If I just try to avoid making a mistake so that I don’t receive any negativity, I’m making the team perform worse.
It’s something I must learn because I am used to training a lot on a daily basis, but now we have more matches and fewer training sessions, so my work dynamic has completely changed. I’m still getting used to it. I must convince my players that there were very good moments in Paris – because even if we suffered, we competed really well – and our team deserved much more against Feyenoord. Do we still have options to keep going in the Champions League? Yes, we do. Are we going to focus on improving our level of performance? Yes, we are.
Well, one of my pillars as a manager is to look for the opposition’s goal; to play direct. From here, you have to be protagonists with the ball. We have to create mechanisms for the player to feel like he can dominate these situations, and I talk a lot about how I can make my team-mate better on the pitch. We talk a lot about the time and space that a player has on the ball and the passing options. I work a lot on this: the capacity that a player has when he receives the ball. These mechanisms have to be worked on heavily, and you need time, but you need the player to have enough personality to do things or undertake concepts.
