Alaves' battle to stay out of the La Liga relegation zone will continue on Saturday afternoon when they head to Girona.
The visitors are currently 17th in the La Liga table, level on points with 18th-placed Leganes, while Girona occupy 13th, seven points ahead of their opponents in this weekend's contest at Estadi Montilivi.
Match preview
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Girona have not been victorious in La Liga since the start of February, only picking up three points from their last seven matches, which have been earned courtesy of draws with Celta Vigo, Espanyol and Valencia.
Michel's side will enter this match off the back of a 4-1 defeat at Barcelona, and their recent struggles have left them in 13th spot in Spain's top flight, with a record of nine wins, seven draws and 13 defeats bringing 34 points.
Girona are only actually seven points outside of the relegation zone, so there is work for them to do to stay out of the bottom three, and another poor result this weekend would be damaging for the Catalan side.
The White and Reds were so impressive last season, finishing third in the table to secure Champions League football for the 2024-25 campaign, but it has been a more testing campaign for the club.
Girona have picked up 21 points from their 14 home league matches during the 2024-25 campaign, and they will be welcoming an Alaves outfit that have 11 points to show from their 15 away fixtures this term.
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Alaves will enter this match off the back of a 2-0 home defeat to Rayo Vallecano, with the result leaving them in 17th spot in the table, level on points with 18th-placed Leganes heading into the final straight.
The Basque side also had an impressive 2024-25 season, finishing 10th, but like Girona, they have had their issues this term, and the team are firmly locked in a relegation battle at this stage of proceedings.
Eduardo Coudet's side have only lost one of their last four league games, though, drawing with Mallorca and Las Palmas either side of a standout home win over Villarreal on March 8.
Alaves have not managed to overcome Girona in Spain's top flight since May 2019, though, losing two of their last three matches with the Catalan side, including a 1-0 reverse in January 2025.
The Blue and Whites also suffered a 3-0 defeat to Girona in the corresponding match during the 2023-24 campaign.
Team News
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Girona will be able to welcome Donny van de Beek back into their squad on Saturday, with the midfielder serving the suspension that ruled him out of the contest with Barcelona last time out.
Bojan Miovski, Ivan Martin and Abel Ruiz are still missing for the Catalan side, while Ricard Artero and Bryan Gil face late fitness tests, so five players could be absent for the hosts here.
Portu and Van de Beek are expected to be introduced into the XI, which could mean that Arnaut Danjuma, who was on the scoresheet against Barcelona last time out, features through the middle.
As for Alaves, Nahuel Tenaglia will miss out through suspension due to the milestone booking that he picked up against Rayo.
The visitors have not reported any fresh fitness concerns, though, which could mean that there is only one change from the last match, with Moussa Diarra potentially being introduced at the back.
Kike Garcia has been in impressive form for Alaves during the 2024-25 campaign, finding the back of the net on 11 occasions in Spain's top flight, and we are expecting him to continue through the middle on Saturday.
Girona possible starting lineup:
Gazzaniga; A Martinez, Blind, Krejci, Gutierrez; Arthur, Herrera, Van de Beek; Portu, Danjuma, Tsygankov
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Sivera; Diarra, Abqar, Mourino, Sanchez; Jordan, Blanco; Cabanes, Guridi, Alena; Kike Garcia
We say: Girona 1-1 Alaves
This is a difficult match to call, with Alaves avoiding defeat in seven of their 15 away games in La Liga this term; Girona have home advantage, but we are expecting the Catalan side to be held to a low-scoring draw.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
