Quique Álvarez sees Almería match as a chance to move closer to the top

“Beating Almería would bring us closer to the top places,” Quique Álvarez said ahead of the Andalusian side’s visit to Montilivi. For the Girona coach, the match is an important opportunity in the race for direct promotion as the standings tighten. He believes a victory would give his team a significant lift.

The match is scheduled for 16:15 and pits Girona against the second-placed side. It comes after the defeat at Zubieta, where the loss to Real Sociedad B left issues to address beyond David López’s sending-off, Spanish media report. Álvarez wants his team to recapture the positive feeling of recent weeks and says the result should not overshadow its recent progress, particularly at Montilivi, where he hopes it can rediscover its best form.

The defeat also carried a personal cost. Speaking about the emotional effect on a young player after the effort involved in his recovery, Álvarez said: “It’s difficult mentally for me, but above all for him.” For the Almería match, Jastin joins Bryan Gil and Javier Boñar among the absentees. David López will also be unavailable because of his suspension following his dismissal at Zubieta.

Almería arrive having gone nine league rounds unbeaten, with seven wins and two draws. Álvarez praised their ability to adapt, whether through possession or from a deeper position. García Pimienta will be in the visitors’ dugout; he is a childhood friend of Quique’s, and the two share a footballing education linked to Barcelona. “For me it’s a special match because I’m playing against a great friend, a childhood friend,” Álvarez said.

Beyond this fixture, Álvarez believes Girona still need to improve to establish themselves among the promotion contenders. Oviedo and then Eibar follow Almería. The coach sees this run as a way to gauge his squad’s true level and as “an incentive for us, to see where we are.” Girona also have the opportunity to reduce the gap to one of their main rivals and show that the defeat at Zubieta was a one-off setback. Álvarez, though, remains focused on Almería, with Montilivi the setting for a match he hopes to turn into an important win.