Girona see Champions League dreams come to an end as AC Milan secure narrow victory | OneFootball

Girona’s first ever run in the Champions League will be ending at the league phase, as their knockout stage hopes have come to an end after a narrow defeat to AC Milan at the San Siro.

The hosts were dominant in the opening stages, and they came close on two occasions as Tijjani Reijnders and Rafael Leao were both denied by saves from Paulo Gazzaniga. The woodwork was also struck twice as Theo Hernandez’s mis-hit effort clipped the crossbar, while former Valencia midfielder Yunus Musah crashed a strike back off the post.

Girona were under the cosh, and unfortunately, they could not hold out as Milan struck the first blow eight minutes before half time. Girona lost possession in midfield, and that allowed Ismael Bennacer to play in Leao, who beat one challenge before firing high into the net from close range.

Viktor Tsygankov in action during Girona’s Champions League match against AC Milan (Photo by Girona FC / X)

Girona looked to force an equaliser in the second half, and they thought they had it as Bryan Gil scored a rare goal. However, it was ruled out for offside on-field, and the VAR team agreed with that decision, much to the frustration of the Catalans.

Both teams looked to score in the final stages, but ultimately, it was Leao’s first half effort that proved to be the difference between the two teams. Girona needed to win this one in order to keep their hopes alive of reaching the Champions League knockout stages, but with it being a defeat, their run will come to an end after next week’s match against Arsenal.

Ultimately, it has been a campaign of missed opportunities for Girona, who should have picked up more points in some of their previous league phase matches. They will enjoy that match against Arsenal at Montilivi, but after that, their sole focus will be on La Liga.