Vice-leader of the Spanish Championship, Girona entered the field listlessly and lost 1-0 away to Mallorca, this Sunday, at the Iberostar Stadium, wasting the chance to touch the leader Real Madrid. The team remains on 59 points and is now seven points behind coach Carlo Ancelotti’s team.
With two Brazilians – Yan Couto and Savinho – called up for the friendlies against England and Spain in March, Girona started the game centered in Mallorca’s midfield, as both teams played with low lines, forcing many direct throws.
Mallorca won one of their six first-half corners in the 5th minute. In the rebound, the ball fell to Uruguayan Giovanni González, who shot wide.
Girona did not try to exploit the gaps in Mallorca’s defense and continued to play defensively. Until the 8th minute, Ivan Martin received a cross and headed safely into the hands of goalkeeper Rajkovic.
As the first half passed, the teams loosened up and the game became more open, but with Mallorca better positioned in midfield compared to Girona. In the 32nd minute, in a fight, Mallorca finally opened the scoring with a shot from Copete: 1-0.
The second half started with Girona trying to put pressure on Mallorca at home, but without results. Soon the home team imposed itself with a high marking line. As the second half progressed, Mallorca gave the ball to Girona and chose to defend. The strategy worked and Girona had to suffer another defeat in the competition.
Two more games were also played this Sunday. Villarreal massacred Granada 5-1 and now have 32 points. Atlético de Madrid had no difficulty beating Betis 2-1 and has 55 points in the competition.