Girona mourns relegation to Second Division

GironaMontilivi experienced the funeral of a Girona that next season will play in the Second Division. The Gironans had to beat Elche, but they could only draw (1-1), in what could be Míchel's last game on the bench. The Vallecas native's tenure has been amazing, but it will end where it began and with a sadness that does not do justice to what has been experienced. Things will happen in the coming hours, and none of them will be good.

So many emotions were felt that an act as simple as ordering them becomes complicated. From the extraordinary reception that made the hairs stand on end almost two hours before the match, to the unheard-of passivity with which the Gironans competed in the first half, which scandalized a stadium that even booed its players. There was time to get very nervous, upon realizing that no player in white and red had the malice to shoot at goal. Indignation, impotence, some near-heart attack and some other bout of depression also took place, seeing everything dark after Elche's goal. There was also hope, of course. It was impossible to feel indifferent to it all.

Montilivi, amidst the fireworks, flares, chants, and the madness manifested in an uncontrollable desire to remain in the First Division, rose to the occasion, but at halftime believed it would not succeed. And it was right. Míchel's team staged an unworthy start, which it erased from collective memory, provisionally, in the first attack of the second half. It needed a spark like that, the stadium, incredulous at what its eyes were seeing. The Gironan Álvaro Rodríguez had turned with great ease at the end of an initial act that could have ended even worse, if the same Palamos forward had not missed the second moments later.

We were left with seeing everything dark, a feeling that was palpable with anyone you exchanged a couple of words with during the break. The same ones who spat out barbarities and played the seer, believing they could guess the club's destiny, had quickly backed down, when Arnau Martínez, a footballer who debuted as a minor and has six seasons with the first team, celebrated the draw like an animal, after taking advantage of a rebound from Dituro on Ounahi's free kick. It was the 48th minute and that represented just the Catalans' second shot. Montilivi needed a flame and it was someone who truly loves the crest who lit it. Too bad it was for nothing.

From then on, chaos. The believers prayed, but not to any deity, but to Cristhian Stuani, who came on around the hour mark. He had a clear chance, blocked by an opponent. Most were already biting their skin, because their nails had been gone for a while. Panic also appeared in the form of a counter-attack by Germán Valera who, in front of Gazzaniga, shot just wide of the post. For Girona, that point was worth no more than a gift card to spend, in the best of cases, a season in hell. Whatever it is, it will be a long one.

The woodwork, in favor of Elche

The people of Girona only needed one goal and they spent practically three-quarters of an hour trying to get it, with varying peaks of intensity. There, football no longer had much to say. It was more a matter of stubbornness, epic, or any supernatural ingredient known or yet to be known. Because there are things that only happen in Girona and are not experienced anywhere else. Like the current drama, which is already known.

Lemar, with a shot against the crossbar, inaugurated the last ten minutes. Hearts were beating with enormous force, the scenario was not suitable for people with delicate health. People were seen walking up and down, unable to stand still. For others, their job was at stake: a bunch of anonymous people depending on a group of millionaires sending a ball into the back of the net. That's football!

With a mixture of hope, tension, and panic, the clock was running out. Everyone was already on their feet. But something was missing: where was the goal? Where on earth was permanence? There were seven minutes of added time and not even then. Montilivi had no other choice than, as so many times before, to end up crying for the end of a stage that has been beautiful. Girona's heart had been shattered.