NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

GIRONA HAVE HAD A STUNNING SEASON IN SPAIN'S LALIGA, BUT THERE IS MORE TO THIS CLUB THAN MEETS THE EYE

- Nick Said

Girona are playing in only their fourth season in LaLiga and have a tiny 14 600-seater stadium, yet have proved major disruptors in this campaign and at one stage looked well on course to challenge Real Madrid and Barcelona for the title.

Those hopes have faded slightly for coach Michel Sánchez's side, but barring a dire end to the season, they will qualify for the UEFA Champions League in the next campaign.

So how have they risen from nohopers to being among Spain's elite clubs? And this from a team that has spent most of its history playing in the third and fourth-tiers in the country's football pyramid.

To understand that, we need to learn a little history... and geography. The city of Girona is about an hour's drive north of Barcelona and in the same Cataluña region. This is the same province that Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola hails from.

The big difference is that the entire 90000-strong population of Girona would fit into Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium with plenty of seats to spare.

94 Girona FC was formed on August 1, 1930, almost 94 years ago, after another local team, Unión Esportiva Girona, went bankrupt

The club won promotion to LaLiga for the first time in their long history following the 2016/17 season, and ahead of the new campaign, the City Football Group (CFG), which owns Manchester City and several other teams around the world, acquired a 44.3% ownership stake.