Cries of "A Segunda" and a midnight meeting between police officers: Manolo González's D-Day

BarcelonaManolo González has never been dismissed. They were close to it at the Ebro in 2018, but the sporting director Ander Garitano –who recommended Garagarza for Espanyol B– defended him to the Aragonese club's owner. His first dismissal also came close nine months ago, on November 23, 2024, with the blue and whites in the relegation zone and after their heaviest defeat in La Liga, the 4-1 at Montilivi: in the 30th minute, with possession exceeding 90%, Girona was already winning 4-0 in the Second Division, a fact now being recalled by the Pericos fans on social media, watching Míchel's team's decline.

A midnight meeting

The historic humiliation The incident at the Girona stadium caused a good portion of the 400 Blanquiazul fans who had traveled to the stadium to leave the Montilivi stands at halftime. Among them were members of La Curva, who requested an urgent meeting with club officials: it had to be that Saturday night—the match ended at 8:30 p.m. They therefore headed to Espanyol's training ground, where several Mossos d'Esquadra vans and an unexpected police cordon cordoned off the area. The Juvenil squad, the other major support group, also joined in. The coach with the players and the parakeet entourage arrived from Girona at 10:30 p.m.

After negotiating the terms of the meeting with the club and the police, and accompanied by Espanyol security, around 50 fans entered the facilities to speak with Manolo González, captains Sergi Gómez, Javi Puado and León Cabrera, and sporting director Fran Gara, visiting supporters in front of the cameras in a tough one-on-one. "We wanted to express our displeasure and demand accountability for the ridiculous situation we experienced in Girona," one of those present at the meeting at the training complex told ARA. The meeting lasted more than half an hour and ended at midnight. Despite the exchanges and the obvious tension, there was no bloodshed.

Adding to the social crisis was the sporting dilemma of what to do with Manolo González. The thrashing had opened a deep wound at Espanyol, and the ownership seriously considered sacking their manager. Despite having the support of the dressing room, they were well aware that the manner of the defeat at Montilivi could doom him. Ultimately, Garagarza's position prevailed, advocating for his continued existence, and the Galician coach had an extra lease of life that he took advantage of by beating Celta seven days later.

From then on, the Folgoso do Courel native simplified concepts and strengthened the team at the back, opting for a more recognizable and stable squad, without system changes or flourishes. The players also said a few things to each other's faces and after Nadal, Espanyol took off, to the point that they finished the League above a Girona team that has been in free fall since the beginning of 2025.

An uneven derby

This summer the Espanyol project has taken a leap forward and, with better pieces and more football records than last year, currently occupies European position and comes of one of the best performances of the Manolo González era, the undisputed leader of the Pericos. Girona, their rivals this Friday (9:00 p.m., DAZN), are facing a diametrically opposite situation: they are bottom of the La Liga table despite a great performance in Bilbao and have only picked up 15 of the last 75 points at stake. As happened to Manolo González nine months ago, his coach is beginning to be questioned and a defeat in the Catalan derby at Montilivi could cast doubt on the continuity of Míchel Sánchez, who a year after debut in the Champions League is experiencing his most critical moment on the Girona bench.