GironaGirona has drawn up a plan with which it hopes to be competitive enough in the return to the First Division. In its premiere, which lasted a couple of years, the Girona entity collected successes and failures. As will happen now, there were a lot of changes to the staff. The main skill was to retain the protagonist block, in which the workers predominated over the stars. That locker room was a group of friends watching over whoever was next to them. This feature lost strength in the second year, in which the few reinforcements failed to get involved in the existing identity, which in fact was not the same.
During the second promotion to Primera, new feelings of belonging have been woven. Who unites the before and the after is Quique Cárcel, the sporting director and creator of a global idea that has finally been rewarded. Míchel Sánchez is a leader with names and surnames. Because on the pitch we could talk about different actors, but no one questions the power of the Madrid coach. This has not always been the case in Montilivi; curiously, coinciding with stages of poor results. Quique and Míchel represent a stable model, with clear patterns and a fixed course in search of stabilizing among the older ones everything they had imagined during the year if the dream came true. And it has been fulfilled.
We talked about successes and failures, and Girona feels better prepared. In the sports planning that is scheduled to run this summer, it moves in a number of additions ranging from 10 to 12 and that will affect those who will not continue. Reinforcements of different prestige and in all lines. Players who really improve on what already exists. From the club they are clear that at least three or four players with quality and experience will have to arrive destined to be starters from the beginning. They will be the ones that will form the powerful nucleus integrating to the created base. The challenge will be to generate enough alternatives to the closet bottom so that newcomers who do not have a default label do not go unnoticed. The bench should also mark the differences. Substitutes must exist.
Talent comes at a price
The rise to the elite will mean that Girona will go from a budget of 10 million to one of almost 50. And all this money will have to be managed well. If Cárcel and Míchel are committed to it, they must be aware that talent has a price. And given that the idea is to strengthen everything, the priorities when it comes to operations are clear. First, not all responsibility should rest with Cristhian Stuani. The Uruguayan will have to be relieved of the pressure he has felt over the years, and will need to be surrounded by footballers with the ability to unbalance when the time comes for the truth. Reinforcing the attack is mandatory.
In the middle of the field, the options multiply. Apart from the role played by City Football Group in the transfers, Girona have finished very happy with the performance offered by Pol Lozano (Espanyol) and Álex Baena (Vila-real), but retaining them will be difficult and does not depend on him. In favor, apart from the category, plays the predisposition -especially Baena- to open a second stage in Montilivi. On the contrary, the box of footballers, which has increased and will have new destinations within reach. Iván Martín will repeat his experience, with whom there is an agreement to extend the transfer. The footballer is very much to the liking of Michel, who has been giving him status to become essential in his scheme.
Arnau Martínez, armored
The coach, who has embraced the defense of 5 although in the background would like to play with 4 defenders, will have all summer to define the type of highs and lows that will suffer the Girona squad. It is as important to be resolute at the front as it is to be well protected at the back. The goal and defense, then, will also be reviewed. The first operation is the renovation of the central Juanpe, the man of the two ascents.
Who is on everyone’s lips is Arnau Martínez, the revelation of the year. The footballer has a contract until 2025, with a termination clause of 20 million. Out of charisma and personality, she is the doll in Montilivi’s eyes, who doesn’t want to see him leave. The club also has no need to sell and being in Primera means a perfect showcase for their progression to continue. Although many clubs follow him – including Barça – no one has submitted an offer and they are not at all worried in the offices. What there is is the conviction to build a squad worthy of Primera so that it can achieve the main goal of the season: permanence.
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