Girona midfielder and recently capped Spain international Aleix Garcia has revealed that coach Michel Sanchez is giving him less instructions than ever, despite the fact that Els Blanquivermells are top of La Liga against all the odds.
Girona lie two points clear of Real Madrid after 13 games, having won 11 of them. Despite it only being their second consecutive season in La Liga, Girona have the best attacking record in the divsion, with 31 goals scored.
Speaking in an interview with RadioMarca, beyond their remarkable form, talent or tactics, Garcia was most impressed with the character of the dressing room.
“What has caught my attention the most has been the humanity of the dressing room. From the beginning they made sure that I was comfortable. It is a great human dressing room regardless of the individual quality that there is, of course.”
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In terms of the football, Girona have been rotating players in and out of positions all season, with many defenders and midfielders appearing in positions that are not altogether accustmoed to. It was put to Garcia that it was disorganisation that was very well organised.
“It sounds strange but the profiles we have in the 11 carry it out perfectly. I remember a talk with the coach when Oriol [Romeu] left, where he told me that if I went forward, Yangel could come in or the other way around. We have a dynamism in the centre of the field that is difficult to defend. For the rivals it is difficult to defend. Blind and Eric Garcia have mastered that style of play since they were little… we play with that style and we make people enjoy it and we enjoy it on the field of play.”
Garcia was keen to emphasize that not only were they enjoying themselves, but that such was the symphony with which they were playing that they barely needed to communicate any more. And the same goes for Michel.
“The coach is the key to success. He studies the opposition every weekend so that the game is fluid. In the last interviews, he speaks less and less. That means that we are coordinating better. Everything is flowing. We are on the same page. Sometimes I have to be at centre-back when I have never done so in my life, all the players are marking. From the first day he arrived in the second division he said that I would try to speak less, and now we are enjoying ourselves because that’s what is happening.”
The big question that everyone has been asking is whether Girona can go on and challenge for the title.
“I think the right thing to do is to talk about the day to day. At this point being first is no coincidence. 13 games is no coincidence. It’s not luck. It’s not being lucky… people have to take Girona into account. We’re showing we can compete with anyone. We are aware that winning LaLiga is going to be difficult. We will try to be there as long as possible. When there are a few days left we will see what our objective is at that moment.”
