"Elche must feel that Montilivi is full of crazy people"

GironaThe definitive moment has arrived for Girona. No more half measures or nuances: Míchel's team is obliged to beat Elche this Saturday (9 p.m., Teledeporte). It is the only result that will allow them to remain in La Liga. They don't need to look at other matches, they just need a victory. A draw or a defeat will condemn them to the Second Division and save Sarabia's team, who are also playing for it. In the event of a Catalan victory, Elche will have to wait for what happens in other games to know if they stay in the elite or go down.

Girona has joined forces to defend its category with the intention that Elche not only faces eleven footballers, but the entire city. Everyone is summoned two hours before the match in the Montilivi esplanade to receive Míchel's team, which has stalled and hasn't won in seven games. “We will launch 500 flares and cause the bus to stop so that the players are forced to walk the last few meters to the stadium. Let them drown, if necessary, they will be given oxygen afterwards”, explained David Herrera, the voice of Jovent Gironí, to Montiliving.

The white-and-red animation group asks that the public, who had already sold out tickets first thing Monday morning, be in their seats when the warm-up begins, half an hour before the final starts. “We are playing for everything, we could go to hell. Montilivi must be hell. We can't be mummies in the stands: Elche must feel that the stadium is full of crazy people about to jump onto the field with the desire to kill them”. The Anti-Violence Commission has declared the match high-risk and the security measures will be increased with more personnel to ensure that no one crosses any red line.

Girona will have to control the overexcitement that will be experienced in the stadium and that is already being felt in the city these days, which is doing its bit to make it a perfect night. The City Council replaced the Catalan flag in Plaça Catalunya with one bearing Girona's crest, and dressed the Tarlà on La Rambla in the team's jersey. “The city is with Girona, it's the match of the year”, tweeted mayor Lluc Salellas. The club has also distributed two hundred flags in its official store, with the aim of decorating balconies and dyeing the streets white-and-red. The objective of saving the team is common.

The players have also shown their enthusiasm through their social media. “We will give everything for this crest”, promised Joel Roca. “It's a final and we will die on the field”, warned Fran Beltrán. “Let no one doubt that we will give everything”, ratified Arnau Martínez. “Finals are played with soul, with heart, and with our people”, transmitted Cristhian Stuani, who has consolidated as the main reason to truly believe in staying up. The Uruguayan continues to have physical problems, but, once again, and given the general lack of goals, he will give his all for the cause.

Legends of the club have also spoken, such as Eloi Amagat, who experienced nights like the one awaiting us. “It’s the most important match in the club’s history: the people of Girona will respond, now the team must do so too”.

Revenge and end of an era

The Girona-Elx match has extra-footballing ingredients that make it even more interesting. In the white-and-red memory, with a desire for revenge, the final to access the First Division in 2020 is still etched, in which Pere Milla frustrated Girona's promotion with a goal in the 96th minute. In that match, Stuani was sent off. The Uruguayan, who got his own back in Tenerife two years later, could be playing his last match at Montilivi, as his contract ends at the end of the season.

He is not the only protagonist who could be ending an era at Girona: Míchel Sánchez also finishes his contract. The coach has not only been non-committal about a possible continuation, but he is constantly appearing as an alternative for various European benches; the latest being that of Ajax Amsterdam.

Practically everything will be resolved in the coming hours. Starting with Girona's destination, whether in the First or Second Division, and continuing with the future of two of the club's main historical legends. It is also not out of the question that other cycles will end, such as that of Quique Cárcel, the sporting director, with a career spanning twelve years, as the main one pointed out: in two seasons, the team has gone from the Champions League and the highest budget it has ever had, to constantly flirting with failure.