Girona will be aiming to record their 14th victory of what has been an incredible La Liga campaign to date when they welcome Alaves to Estadi Montilivi on Monday night.
The home side are currently top of the table, boasting 41 points from their opening 16 matches of the season, while Alaves sit in 13th position, picking up 16 points from as many games this term.
Match preview
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Girona recorded a statement victory over Barcelona last weekend, running out 4-2 winners at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, with the result leaving them at the top of the table on 41 points, boasting a record of 13 wins, two draws and one defeat from their 16 league games this term.
The Catalan outfit are also the leading goalscorers in Spain's top flight this season, finding the back of the net on 38 occasions, and they are comfortably on course for their highest-ever final position at this level.
Girona are only in their fourth-ever La Liga campaign, with their best finish proving to be 10th, which was achieved in both 2017-18 and 2022-23, but their supporters are currently dreaming of the title.
Michel's side will bring a three-game winning run into this match, while they are unbeaten in all competitions since a 3-0 home loss to Real Madrid at the end of September.
Girona have picked up 10 points from their four league games at home since the reverse to Real Madrid, but they were held to a 1-1 draw when Alaves last visited them in Spain's top fight in January 2019.
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Alaves actually recorded a 2-1 victory in the last La Liga meeting between the two sides, which took place in May 2019, but they will be the huge underdogs in this match.
El Glorioso secured a return to this level through last season's Segunda Division playoffs, with the team managing to bounce straight back to La Liga following their relegation in 2021-22.
Alaves have not managed to finish higher than 16th in Spain's top flight since 2019, but a respectable campaign to date has seen them collect 16 points, which is enough for 13th position in the table.
Luis Garcia's side have won four, drawn four and lost eight of their 16 league matches this season, but goals have been a real issue this term, only managing 14 in their 16 fixtures, which is the joint-second worst record in the division alongside Las Palmas and Mallorca.
Alaves will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 home loss to Las Palmas last weekend, and they will end their 2023 with a clash against title hopefuls Real Madrid next Saturday.
Team News
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Girona will be without the services of Yangel Herrera, Borja Garcia, Joel Roca, Ricard Artero and Toni Villa on Monday evening due to fitness problems.
Meanwhile, Cristhian Stuani is suspended due to the milestone yellow card that he picked up in the away success over Barcelona last time out.
Head coach Michel is expected to name the same side that took to the field for the first whistle against the reigning champions, with Ivan Martin dropping into a deeper midfield position due to Herrera's absence, while Artem Dovbyk, who has eight league goals this season, will again lead the line.
As for Alaves, Aleksandar Sedlar and Giuliano Simeone will miss the contest due to injuries, while Abdel Abqar is suspended following his yellow card against Las Palmas.
Head coach Garcia is expected to resist the temptation to shuffle his pack from the last match, with potentially the only alteration seeing Nahuel Tenaglia replace Abqar at the back.
Samu Omorodion will again lead the line for Alaves, while Luis Rioja and Ianis Hagi should also feature in the starting side, leaving the likes of Alex Sola and Kike Garcia on the bench.
Girona possible starting lineup:
Gazzaniga; E Garcia, D Lopez, Blind; Couto, Martin, A Garcia, Gutierrez; Tsygankov, Dovbyk, Savio
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Sivera; Gorosabel, Tenaglia, Marin, Lopez; Rioja, Blanco, Guridi, Rebbach; Hagi; Omorodion
We say: Girona 2-0 Alaves
Alaves are capable of making this an uncomfortable match for Girona, but the league leaders are in such excellent form, so we are finding it difficult to back against them. The away side have found it difficult to score goals this season, so we are also expecting Girona to keep a clean sheet on Monday night.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Matt Law
