A flower appears in Girona's ass in the Ciutat de València

GironaGirona had seen it all but over. They were already imagining themselves heading home angry, and for their own shortcomings. But a Girona native, Joel Roca, appeared to save what was a dreadful match against Levante (1-1), a draw that would have meant a significant setback in their fight to stay in the First Division. The Camprodon native's goal wasn't without its mysteries, because it was initially disallowed unjustly. Those were seconds of utter injustice, transformed into joy when VAR intervened, and after reviewing the footage and confirming the goal was perfectly legal, he reversed his decision. The last-minute point, combined with Mallorca's draw, keeps their cushion above the relegation zone at two matchdays.

Girona are fortunate, thanks to the cushion they acquired between December and January and the fact that their rivals are in even worse shape, having slipped somewhat in recent weeks: of their last seven matches, they've only won one. Míchel insists on urging his men to maintain the same sense of urgency they felt when they were struggling in the relegation zone. He literally says that "our lives must depend on every play." But of course, when you visit a team that is truly breathing down their necks in the relegation zone, you realize who has priority in terms of urgency.

It was Levante, not Girona, for whom every play felt like their lives depended on it. That's why the result was a hair's breadth from being a disaster. The red and whites, very naive with the ball, played at a snail's pace, while the home side, desperate to regain their competitive edge, spared no effort. They didn't have to do much to overcome the Catalans, who were already struggling before traveling to Valencia, as Bryan Gil injured his knee and Ounahi felt discomfort in his quadriceps during the previous training session. All of this led to Claudio Echeverri's first start, but the match went right over him, just like the rest of his teammates.

After a forgettable first half, in which Girona barely troubled Levante, waiting for a moment of brilliance that never came, and Levante, occasionally dangerous, only created chances by taking advantage of Girona's leniency, stubbornly clinging to every play. Espí shook things up with a header from close range, aided by Blind and Vitor Reis, who misjudged their marking.

The sending-off changed the script

Then came Olasagasti's reckless move, leaving Luis Castro's team with ten men, with thirty minutes still to play. The game changed completely at that point, as Girona put all their eggs in one basket. What choice did they have? Míchel took a gamble with Ounahi, hoping for a stroke of luck. Francés came close, with a shot that Ryan saved at the last second. The final act was a desperate attack and goal, but Girona couldn't find a way through the traffic and showed no inspiration whatsoever. Witsel even hit the crossbar when he had a clear chance.

Until Joel Roca's moment of brilliance in the 94th minute, with a shot from the edge of the box that the referee initially interpreted as Vanat obstructing Ryan's view. But that wasn't the case at all, a fact confirmed by the monitor. With 11 matchdays remaining in the championship, Girona, who even came close to making it 1-2 with a shot from Vitor Reis, suffered, but ultimately avoided an unnecessary scare.