Girona have been dumped out of the Copa del Rey by fourth-tier opposition, prior to their Champions League clash with Liverpool next week.
The Spanish side were one of the surprise packages in La Liga last season, finishing third in the table after accumulating 81 points.
This season hasn’t gone as smoothly, however, with Girona eighth in the league and way down in 30th place in the Champions League.
On Wednesday, Michel’s side were sent packing from the Spanish cup in the second round, being dumped out by fourth-tier team Logrones, losing 4-3 on penalties.
That’s despite 19-year-old defender Pol Arnau having to play in goal for the hosts during extra-time, following an injury to goalkeeper Enrique Royo.
There was controversy in the shootout, however, with Cristhian Stuani’s spot-kick deemed not to have crossed the line, despite appearing to.
Speaking after the game, manager Michel bemoaned a hugely disappointing night, admitting that they deserved to lose regardless of the drama.
This is incredible…
Cristhian Stuani’s Girona were knocked out of Copa del Rey on Wednesday night, as the Uruguayan’s decisive penalty during the shootout was deemed a miss.pic.twitter.com/kHiS6OA4kI
— Warriors of Uruguay (@UruguayanHeroes) December 5, 2024
“When you are relaxed, these things can happen to you,” Michel said.
“In matches, the difference in divisions is not seen, and we did not know how to generate any chances.
“It was not noticeable that we were playing with an extra man. We did not know how to sink them. This format is made so that things like those that have happened to us can happen.
“We did not do things to deserve to be in the next round. It is a hard blow, and now we have to analyse what happened.
“We did not give our best version.”
Michel did make 10 changes to the side that drew 2-2 at Villarreal in La Liga last weekend, though, which does excuse the result slightly.
Girona’s next game sees them host Real Madrid on Saturday evening (8pm GMT) before welcoming Liverpool to the Estadi Montilivi.
This result will be music to the ears of Arne Slot, whose Reds side make the trip to Spain next Tuesday evening (5.45pm) for a Champions League meeting.
All the pressure is on the Spanish outfit to get a result, with Liverpool already having one foot in the knockout stages after winning all five games.
It should be seen as a great opportunity for Slot to ring the changes, allowing key players a breather after a relentless run of fixtures.
The likes of Harvey Elliott and Federico Chiesa will hopefully get minutes, with the latter scoring for the under-21s on Wednesday in their 4-3 defeat to Nordsjaelland.
