Villarreal attacks Fort Montilivi and gives hope to Europe

On Tuesday, Villarreal attacked Fort Montilivi, impregnable since September, with a solitary goal from Bertrand Traore (0-1) that keeps their Conference League hopes alive, within three points, and makes the game a little more difficult. about achieving second place in EA Sports LaLiga and participating in the Super Cup.

Michel Sanchez’s side, superior in possession and at times, went through their second game without a win after a disappointing 2-2 draw in Vitoria and remain one point behind Barcelona with a game to play. The team of Marcelino García Toral completed the survival exercise and achieved their fourth victory in five days in a duel on the thirty-sixth and penultimate day of the championship.

The dominance of the red and white was evident from the opening minutes, although the visitors had the first chance: a transition led by Alexander Sorloth ended with a cross-shot that failed to reach the goal or Gonçalo Guedes. Villarreal threatened to go on the counter-attack thanks to the speed of their two passes and the quality of Alex Baena, who was applauded on his return to Montilivi.

He was then able to score through Bertrand Traore, a new signing for the Grogues, as was Santi Comesaña, but his shot was saved from the edge of the area by Paulo Gazzaniga, again a key player.

Girona, initially uncomfortable, responded with Yangel Herrera’s deflected shot and improved as time went on, attacking with multiple players and blocking the opposition, with possession exceeding 65% throughout the first half. Until the 10th minute, Artem Dovbik hesitated and was unable to convert a magnificent pass from Viktor Tsygankov, who, like Ivan Martin, was very active.

The locals had a 1-0 lead, but it didn’t turn out as well as in previous days: Herrera touched the left post, heading towards Aleisha Garcia’s cross, and Tsygankov caressed the right post with his first touch after Savio Moreira’s cavalcade. It was the clearest chance of the first half and it forced Villarreal to start looking for goal kick time.

Jorgensen also evaded a Catalan goal thanks to Dovbik’s forced strike, ill-advised but more active than Sorloth in their duel between top scorers.

Girona monopolized the ball against a subdued opponent who didn’t know how to connect passes. And he did well to open the scoring: it seemed like a matter of time, but he didn’t fall in the first 45 minutes.

With the start of the second half, Michel’s team’s control even increased, as they harmed the opponent both vertically and horizontally. Before the hour mark, Yerson Mosquera sent in a deadly pass from Ivan Martin for a corner, and Savio made another attempt, leaving his opponents behind, but miscalculated the successful decisions on the front line. Villarreal was chasing shadows.

It seemed that the goal could only have been local, but it was away: the Catalan defense knew how to prevent Guedes from entering the penalty area, but the ball, rejected, fell at Traore’s feet and the winger beat Gazzaniga to the right post with a tight cross and scored his first goal in Spain. But the 0:1 score did not change the scenario and did not dampen Girona’s ambitions.

The red and whites responded with Tsygankov’s shot hitting the crossbar from the front and a more than clear triple chance from a free-kick: Marcelino’s defense deflected the header of Eric Garcia and David Lopez over the goal line, and Savio fired just over the goal. Miguel Gutierrez and Savio also tried, while Villarreal’s wasted time multiplied and they were blocked.

Girona were looking for a goal but fought back and lost the match and the dream of playing in the European Super Cup was gone but they found applause from proud fans.