Having started our Champions League league phase adventure with a first-ever game against Atalanta, we end it with a maiden encounter against Girona on Wednesday.
In what is sure to be a dramatic night in the competition with all 36 teams in action at the same time (8pm UK), we head into the contest knowing that a point will guarantee our spot in the top eight in the table, and punch our ticket to the last-16 in March.
That has come courtesy of three straight wins, and we could make that four for the first time in the competition since 2005 against an already-eliminated side with just three points to their name.
taste of the top
In their first season juggling European and domestic football, understandably Girona have struggled to match last season’s sensational form. They won just three of their opening 11 league matches, leaving them 13th in the table heading into November, but after that they did find some form.
Just two defeats - to Real Madrid and Mallorca - before the winter break helped them climb to eighth, where they currently remain. However since La Liga resumed this month, a 1-0 win against Alaves was followed by a late goal that saw them fall 2-1 to Sevilla, before Real Vallacano struck twice in the final 10 minutes to win by the same scoreline on Sunday.
The Champions League has proven to be a step too far though, as they have been knocked out with six defeats from seven matches, including single-goal losses to Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool and AC Milan. However, the highlight of this campaign was a 2-0 success over Slovan Bratislava to hand them their first European victory.
What the managers say
Arteta: “We’re here to win the game. In order to do that we’re going to have to be better than them. They’re a really good side, if you look at the games they’ve played in the Champions League against top opposition, they’ve made life very difficult for them.
“Tomorrow it will be a very strong team in order to achieve what we want to do because mathematically the qualifying at the moment is uncertain.”
Michel: “There are many objectives to achieve tomorrow. The main one is that it is a Champions League match in front of our fans and we want to win after three consecutive defeats. The image is important and we want to maintain our prestige.
"We deserve to be in this competition because of our great last year and we must not forget that. In addition, a fifth place for a Spanish team in the tournament is still alive and we must fight for it. We have to win for the competition and our fans.”
Team news
Mikel Merino missed Saturday’s game with Wolves with a knock but is available again, while Martin Odegaard was taken ill before the game but has trained with the team building up the game.
Ben White, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Gabriel Jesus (all knee) and Bukayo Saka (hamstring) remain on the sidelines.
Girona received two setbacks on Sunday, with veteran defender Daley Blind forced to come off after just 30 minutes with a hamstring issue, while goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga was replaced at half-time due to the same injury. Michel confirmed Pau Lopez will instead start between the posts.
Czech international midfielder Ladislav Krejci has a groin issue and won't play, nor will left-back Miguel Gutierrez has been struggling of late with an ankle injury. Former Tottenham man Bryan Gil is suspended, while Dutch attacking midfielder Gabriel Misehouy isn’t registered to play in Champions League matches.
TALKING TACTICS
Adrian Clarke: Michel's side produce a nice blend of technical, possession-based football that is designed to help them play through the lines – and when it comes off, they are a great side to watch. In flashes against Liverpool they showed their quality in a 4-2-3-1, bypassing the Reds on several occasions to create opportunities. So, if our pressing game is not at its best, the Catalonians are good enough to play around us.
Out of possession they drop into a mid-block, but in that congested engine room Girona are not afraid to put their foot in. As it stands, they have committed the joint-highest number of fouls in this year’s competition, averaging 14.7 per game.
They can get caught playing out from the back, and their pressing has exposed them during a challenging Champions League campaign. Scoring just four times, goalscoring has also been a constant issue in this competition and a lack of punch in attack has made it a real uphill battle.
We should also be more athletic than the La Liga side, as against AC Milan they used five players over 30, including 35-year-old David Lopez [above] in their backline. Considering this, pace could be a weapon for us. While Girona are tactically strong and have good technical players, if we play this match at a high tempo they might find us hard to live with.
Facts and stats
After beating Sporting Lisbon 5-1, we could win consecutive away games in the competition for the first time since December 2016.
Girona have lost each of their last four Champions League games, failing to score a single goal along the way. No team from one of Europe’s big five leagues has ever lost five in a row without scoring.
We have conceded just two goals in the Champions League this season, and none from open play - only Inter Milan have also managed that.
Girona have the biggest negative difference between their goals scored (4) and their xG (8.9) in the Champions League.
Only Atalanta (13) have faced fewer shots on target than us (16) in the Champions League. Our average of 2.3 shots on target faced per game is our lowest on record in a single campaign (since 2003/04).
Of players to play at least 270 minutes in this season’s Champions League, only Christoph Baumgartner (3.5) is averaging more fouls conceded per 90 minutes than Girona pair Yangel Herrera (3.2) and Alejandro Frances (3.1).
Kai Havertz is looking to score in four in a row in the competition, with Marco Reus the last German to do this (between 2014 and 2015).
David Raya has kept five clean sheets in the Champions League this season, with only Jens Lehmann, in 2005/06, keeping more for us in a single campaign in the competition (7).
Match officials
Maurizio Mariani will front an all-Italian officiating team at the Estadi Montilivi, who has been refereeing in Serie A since 2013 and has been on the FIFA list from 2019 onwards.
He is a new face in regards to our matches, while this will be his fourth Champions League game of the season. He has already awarded two penalties in that time, and averages four bookings a game.
Referee: Maurizio Mariani
Assistants: Daniele Bindoni, Alberto Tegoni
Fourth official: Daniele Doveri
VAR: Daniele Chiffi
Assistant VAR: Valerio Marini
Recent trips to Spain
While we’ve never faced Girona before, visits to Spain have been much more commonplace down the years. We won our most recent game in the country, which came in the Champions League at Sevilla in October 2023, when Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus netted superb goals. Having also beaten them at home, we could clinch three wins in a row over Spanish opposition for the first time since 2006.
We have won two of our last three games in Spain, after failing to win any of the seven before that. Our previous visit before Seville brought a 2-1 loss at Villarreal in April 2021 in the semi-final of the Europa League, but in May 2019 we did advance to the final of that competition courtesy of a 4-2 success over Valencia.
Historically, trips to Spain have proved problematic with just four wins coming in 18 away games, with the other two registered at Celta Vigo in 2004 and Real Madrid in 2006 - the last time we won back-to-back Champions League visits to Spain.
Live coverage
Tune into Live From N5 just before kick-off to hear live commentary of the game provided by Dan Roebuck and Adrian Clarke, who will guide you through all the action if you’re out and about.
You can also find out which broadcasters are showing the action live wherever you are in the world.
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