Stir with Girona's (non) signing policy

GironaA month has passed since Iván Morante's announcement as a new Girona player. He is the only signing finalized by the white-and-red sporting management during the summer. It has been about eighty days since the relegation to Second Division. And in this period of time, those in charge have been unable to break a deadlock that is starting to cause unease in the locker room. The situation is even more surreal than last summer, when August was a grotesque month, with the team half-formed, forced to compete while points were already being gained and lost. Things did not end well, and no one has reason to think that it will be any different now.

A year ago, when the issue was flirting with disaster, Yangel Herrera got fed up and asked to leave. It wasn't that he didn't see the project clearly, it was that he simply didn't see one at all. He wasn't wrong, the Venezuelan. Girona waited until the last minute to define its direction, a strategy they are repeating this summer, because before moving incoming players, they intend to open the exit door, but no one is leaving. Back then, even Míchel, a man always generous with his words towards his bosses, raised his voice. Days later, after some internal conversations, he publicly backtracked. The consequence was that he ended a brilliant spell with relegation and didn't even have a farewell press conference.

Quique Álvarez, the new coach, hasn't complained yet. At least, not openly. He says he already knows this could happen and that, since he can't do anything about it, he works with what he has. But the locker room is starting to make itself heard, perhaps aware that if bad results arrive, they will be the ones pointed at, having no fault in the existing immobility. David López didn't hide it after the Costa Brava Trophy: “We are stuck because for now no more players are arriving. I understand that until there are departures, there won't be arrivals, but I hope we can move forward and make the necessary changes. We need players who come to help, it's evident that there must be reinforcements.” The Barcelona native is one of only two center-backs on the first team roster. The other is Alejandro Francés. There are no more in the squad.

There is also alarm at the full-back positions, with another pair of players and that's it, and provisionally. Arnau Martínez and Àlex Moreno have all the indications of leaving the entity, which would leave Girona without full-backs. In summary: Quique Álvarez has four defenders and two of them will surely leave. It's dramatic, ten days before the start of the league.

Three key sales

The deadlock lies in the impossibility of finding an exit, mainly because the buying club in question does not meet the demands set by the Girona side, who do not want to lose money and have difficulty balancing the squad cost limit set by LaLiga. Here, no one is yielding, in a standoff difficult to understand for an environment that wants to get its hopes up with the challenge of returning to the top flight immediately, but which despairs at the current situation.

The selection between the players who will stay and those who will leave has already begun, but it will also depend on the offers and how unexpected situations are managed, including the urgencies and last-minute rushes that will occur between now and the end of the month. The candidates to generate income are Azzedine Ounahi, already back in training; Viktor Tsygankov, who does not want to play in the Second Division, and Arnau Martínez, for whom journalist Nacho Sanchis reported that Leipzig and Valencia are competing, with a price set by Girona at eight million. And the aforementioned Àlex Moreno should also leave.

In contrast, the club wishes for players like Fran Beltrán and Vladyslav Vanat to continue at Montilivi and provide arguments to believe in promotion. But uncertainty continues to loom over many cases, which could shake up the locker room even more, as well as collective plans, because the most interesting options to strengthen the team are slipping away and not everyone will wait without a specific date.

And the reinforcements? For now, Alejandro Pozo (Almeria) is liked for the full-back position and Abdul Mumin, a centre-back who is free after his contract with Rayo ended, and Dani Martínez, a centre-back in the Atlético de Madrid reserve team, according to an advance by Mundo Deportivo. Gibert Jordana and Guillem Badia, from the B team, could end up in the first team due to the lack of defensive wingers. And there is also the pending renewals folder, as Minsu and Jastin's contracts end in 2027. For now, the proposals presented have been met with a refusal. Chaos is everywhere.