Girona beat Málaga 1-0 in Montilivi in a gray game for Míchel’s men, for whom a goal from Nahuel Bustos in the final stretch was enough to add the fifth consecutive victory in the League and sleep just four points behind direct ascent.
Girona and Málaga met in Montilivi in a key match for both teams, who needed the three points to continue on their respective paths towards their goals. Míchel’s men came to the duel with significant casualties in defense and in the midfield, and it took very little for them to show themselves on the pitch. They were probably the worst forty-five of the Catalans in a long time.
[+] See the summary of the match
The first bars already gave a glimpse of a thick Girona and without any fluidity with the ball, one of the most important signs of Míchel’s team. Málaga, which in 2022 had only won two games, jumped into the green of Montilivi uncomplexed and wanting to get something positive. Before the first quarter of an hour of the match, Natxo González’s men threatened the local goal twice. Paulino de la Fuente finished off with a header centimeters from Juan Carlos’s goal post and a couple of actions later, former rojiblanco Brandon Thomas forced the goalkeeper to show off with a long shot.
Montilivi was suffering with his team and with 9 minutes remaining the entire stadium fell silent before the surprising change of Míchel, who replaced Samu Saiz with Iván Martín and the footballer left the pitch with monumental anger, telling his coach “you’re a clown”. At the break, the Madrid coach touched more pieces and Víctor Sánchez, with yellow, stayed in the locker room.
Without making a radical change, Girona jumped onto the pitch somewhat better after the break. Pablo Moreno, who had just entered the field of play, served Stuani two good balls, but the Uruguayan, missing in action, was not correct in the definition. Despite this, Málaga still did not feel uncomfortable at all. Brandon, active and participatory, again generated danger in the 57th minute and Juan Carlos had to appear again to prevent the goal with an excellent save.
Everything indicated that the match would end with a draw on the scoreboard, but Nahuel Bustos, in a state of grace for a few days, was enough for five minutes on the pitch to score the winning goal for his team. The Argentine took advantage of a rebound inside the area after a good collective action and, with terrible cold blood, he shot crosswise to explode the joy in Montilivi.