It’ll be our third cross-club clash with City Football Group opponents as we go head-to-head with Girona in Kochi. We find out more about our La Liga opponents.
City link
Girona is the latest football club to come under the City Football Group banner with 44.3% of the La Liga club owned by CFG. The other 44.3% is owned by the Girona Football Group, owned by Pere Guardiola, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola’s brother. 11.4% is owned by the Girona Fans’ Association.
Rise up the ranks
Girona are no La Liga heavyweights…yet. Their incredible rise up the ranks of Spanish football has seen them fluctuate between the lower divisions of the competition and 2016/17 marked a historic moment for the club. Despite losing out on the final match day in 2014/15, Girona finished second in 2016/17, marking their first foray into La Liga in its 87 year history.
Punching above
La Liga is a tough competition to stay in once promoted but Girona have held their own in their first season, finishing 10th. Their 2017/18 season was highlighted with two draws against Atletico Madrid and a win against Real Madrid that saw them finish seven points off European qualification.
Who they’ve got
With the link to City Football Group, there is no surprise there is a City flavour to their roster. Brazilian Douglas Luiz and Spaniard Alex Garcia are on loan from City while Uruguayan Christhian Stuani is currently with Uruguay at the 2018 World Cup and was their top scorer in La Liga.
Esteemed company
Girona is based in Catalonia, a football area made famous by the one and only FC Barcelona. Girona is the second biggest province of Catalonia behind Barcelona but the city itself is the fourth largest city in the area by population behind Tarragona, Lleida and of course, Barcelona.
They play out of the Montilivi Stadium with a capacity of 13,450 only expanding last season after having to meet minimum La Liga requirements.
