Girona is close to a historic qualification to compete in the next edition of the Champions League after beating UD Las Palmas in Gran Canaria (0-2) in a match with three penalties, although only one converted, in the second half, by Artem Dovbyk.
The Ukrainian had missed another before the break, which David López finished off in the Catalan team’s first goal.
The yellow team had an impetuous start, with a suffocating high press, exhibiting more rhythm and speed than their rival, and finding spaces behind a visiting defense that was overwhelmed in the first minutes due to the desperation on the coach’s side. , Michel Sánchez.
This is how the action originated in which Moleiro was knocked down by David López in the 6th minute. The referee signaled a penalty and, although the VAR invited him to review the play, he confirmed his initial decision.
Sandro executed the shot with force, Gazzaniga guessed the side and the ball crashed into his face, leaving the Argentine goalkeeper somewhat shocked.
In their first serious appearance in the rival area, Girona also found themselves with a penalty in their favor. It was at the exit of a corner, when Kirian Rodríguez naively grabbed Èric García’s shirt.
The shot from eleven meters was executed by Dovbyk, without excessive force and placement, and was rejected by Valles, but David López was faster than Álex Suárez and sent the ball into the net.
The two plays that marked the first half came back to Las Palmas, extinguishing their initial momentum, which allowed Girona to grow in the game and reach halftime without any major upsets.
In the second half, an individual action by Yan Couto inside the area was interrupted by Mika Mármol with a knockdown that the referee punished again as a penalty. And history repeated itself. He went to see the VAR and reaffirmed his decision.
On his second attempt from eleven meters, Dovbyk changed the side of the shot and converted it, although Valles was close to aborting his shot again.
With the disadvantage increased, the UD Las Palmas coach, as a visitor.
The Catalan team was only troubled by a long-range shot from Moleiro that hit the crossbar in the 85th minute and a shot by Munir in extra time that Gazzaniga rejected.
Furthermore, Girona does not lose any of its players warned of suspension seven days before the duel against Barcelona in Montilivi, with second place in the league at stake.
Datasheet:
0. Las Palmas: Álvaro Valles; Álex Suárez (Munir, min. 63), Coco, Mika Mármol, Sinkgraven (Sergi Cardona, min. 63); Javi Muñoz (Benito, min. 81), Perrone (Fabio, min. 78), Kirian; Marvin Park, Sandro (Marc Cardona, min. 63) and Moleiro.
2. Girona: Gazzaniga; Eric, David Lopez, Blind, Miguel; Aleix García; Yan Couto (Tsygankov, min. 70), Iván Martín (Solís, min. 89), Herrera (Arnau, min. 89), Savinho (Pablo Torre, min. 80); and Dovbyk (Portu, min. 70).
Goals: 0-1, min. 26: David Lopez. 0-2, min. 56: Dovbyk, penalty.
Referee: Jorge Figueroa Vázquez (Andalusian Committee). He showed a yellow card to the local player Mika Mármol (49+) and to the visitors Dovbyk (36), Herrera (39) and Yan Couto (69).
Incidents: match of the thirty-third day of LaLiga EA Sports played at the Gran Canaria Stadium in front of 18,734 spectators. The kick-off was performed by a representation of the Canarian women’s futsal team that was champion of Spain in 1999. A minute of silence was observed for the recent deaths of Luis Jiménez Chirino, former director of UD Las Palmas (73 years old), and by the Gran Canarian journalist Pedro Guerra (49 years old).