Sports Mole reviews Tuesday’s Champions League clash between Girona and Slovan Bratislava, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Both bidding for a top spot in the Champions League, Girona and Slovan Bratislava will meet at Estadio Montilivi on Tuesday evening.
Slovan sit second at the bottom of the Giants League stage table, while the hosts have also lost twice – proving their worst enemies on both occasions.
Preview the match
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After a Paulo Gazzaniga own goal cost them a point against Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League debut, Girona emerged empty-handed from their first home match in Europe’s top club competition earlier this month.
Michel’s men were beaten 3-2 by Feyenoord at Montilivi, with missed penalties and own goals deciding an eventful encounter: Yangel Herrera and Ladislav Krejci both put the ball into their own net, while Gazzaniga stopped a penalty from one end and Bojan Mevski. One missed the other.
Girona have therefore scored three own goals in two games so far – already the most goals scored by a single team in a season – and are in danger of becoming the first Spanish team to suffer defeats in each of their first three Champions League matches. .
In La Liga, the Catalan club did not fare much better, taking a modest 12 points from their first 10 matches to finish 13th in the table.
After Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at home to Real Sociedad, they have won just one of their last eight matches in all competitions, and just three of 12 so far this season.
All of this leaves last season’s championships in the rearview mirror, so Michel will be keen to get back on track by winning the first ever meeting between Girona and their next opponents.
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Slovan Bratislava will arrive in Catalonia without a win throughout their last six matches against Spanish teams, since beating Barcelona 2-1 in the 1969 Cup Winners’ Cup final – their only major European victory to date.
Recently, after making it through the qualifiers, the Slovakian side began their current Champions League campaign with a 5-1 defeat against Celtic, followed by another four-goal loss two weeks later.
Manager Vladimir Weiss – in his second spell at the club – saw Slovan lose 4-0 to Premier League champions Manchester City last time out, conceding two goals in each of the two halves.
They have now lost all five of their last five matches in UEFA group or knockout matches – conceding 16 goals and scoring just three – and their latest data also shows that it will be difficult to secure a qualifying spot in the league stage this year.
Slovan has faced 33 more shots than they have attempted in their first two matches – the worst shot differential of any team – while only Sparta Prague have an average possession lower than their modest 31% share.
They have yet to prove much of a threat in the final third either: Austrian defender Kevin Wimmer, who scored at Celtic Park, is one of only two players to have had a shot on target so far, along with veteran midfielder Juraj Kuka.
Back in the Slovak First League, the Sky Blues beat Spartak Trnava 1-0 in a derby match at the weekend, to retain top spot. They may have lost just three times in 22 games this season, but they have conceded four or more goals on each occasion.
Girona Champions League format:
Girona formation (all competitions):
Slovan Bratislava form in the Champions League:
Slovan Bratislava form (all competitions):
Team news
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Girona’s long list of absences includes several important names ahead of Tuesday’s decisive match, with Viktor Tsygankov, Daley Blind and Oriol Romeu joining a squad that in the summer included Yasser Asprilla.
Pau Lopez and Brian Gil are also unavailable, with Michel’s side close to their bare bones, but former Braga striker Abel Ruiz should be fit to play a role at some stage.
Bojan Mevski is set to lead the home side’s attack, supported by Dutch duo Donny van de Beek and Arnaut Danjuma, while David Lopez takes charge of the team’s defence: as well as scoring the opening goal against Feyenoord, the latter has recovered the ball 12 times – the most ever. Defender in one Champions League match this season.
Meanwhile, the main absentee for Slovan Bratislava will be influential playmaker Juraj Kuka, who has just returned to training after undergoing knee surgery last month.
Croatian star Marko Tolic must therefore play a key role behind lone striker David Strelic, with Vladimir Weiss Jnr – the son of the visiting team’s manager – providing support from the outside.
Georgia captain Joram Cascia will play at the heart of Slovan’s defence, with former Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Kevin Wimmer partnering him.
Possible Girona lineup:
Gazzaniga. A. Martinez, D. Lopez, Creese, Gutierrez; Martin, Herrera, Solis; Van de Beek, Danjuma; Ruiz
Slovan Bratislava expected lineup:
Takak; Blackman, Kashia, Wimmer, Shaarani; Bagric, Savvidis; Parseghian, Tolick, Weiss Jr.; Strelik
We say: Girona 2-1 Slovan Bratislava
Although Girona has been plagued by injuries and inconsistent form, they have yet to win at home against one of the Champions League’s more modest opponents.
Slovan are certainly the best team in Slovakia at the moment, but their defensive shortcomings are magnified when they stand on the European stage.
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