Míchel Sánchez leaves Girona after relegation: the end of the most successful era in the club's recent history
Míchel Sánchez will no longer be Girona's coach, the Catalan club confirmed on 28 May 2026, several days after the end of a season in which the team was relegated from La Liga. The parting was announced after a 1:1 draw against Elche at Montilivi, a result that was not enough for Girona to remain in the top tier of Spanish football. According to the club's official announcement, Míchel and the members of his coaching staff Salva Fúnez, David Porcel and Juan Carlos Balaguer are bringing their spell at Girona to an end after a period that included promotion back to the Primera, the stabilisation of the team and a historic qualification for the Champions League.
The departure of the 50-year-old coach from Madrid cannot be viewed only through the last, results-wise painful season. In its club statement, Girona emphasised his dedication, professionalism and humane relationship with club members, supporters, the board and employees. The same statement says that since his arrival in the summer of 2021, Míchel led the first team in 221 official matches, making him one of the key coaching figures in the club's recent history. According to figures published by Spanish media after the official confirmation, his final record at Girona stands at 91 wins, 47 draws and 83 defeats.
The draw against Elche closed a season without salvation
The match against Elche, played in the final round of La Liga, carried clear competitive weight: Girona needed a win to keep alive their chances of survival. According to Girona's official report, Elche took the lead through Álvaro Rodríguez in the 38th minute, while the home team equalised with a goal by Arnau Martínez at the start of the second half. The official match statistics record a final score of 1:1, 14,019 spectators at Estadi Montilivi, ten Girona shots and three Elche shots. Although the home team tried to find a second goal after the equaliser, Elche defended the point that was enough for them to stay up.
According to the final La Liga table, Girona finished the 2025/26 season in 19th place with 41 points. Mallorca with 42 points and Real Oviedo with 29 points also finished in the relegation zone, while Elche, Levante and Osasuna stayed above the line. Elche ended the season with 43 points, and Girona remained two points away from the place that would have secured survival. Such an outcome further strengthened the impression of a dramatic fall because only two seasons earlier the club had been third in Spain and was preparing for its first appearance in Europe's strongest club competition.
In its own report after the match, Girona described that the team had an obligation to win, but that clarity was lacking in the final third in the duel with Elche. The club pointed out that the result sent the team into the Second Division and that it was a particularly difficult outcome after a period in which European dreams had been lived at Montilivi. Such wording reflects the wider context of the season: Girona were not relegated after one match, but after a series of results-related problems that accumulated throughout the league campaign. Still, the final draw remained the symbolic breaking point, because that very point was enough for Elche and not enough for Girona.
From the Segunda to the Champions League
Míchel took over Girona in the summer of 2021, at a time when the club was still in the second tier of Spanish football. According to Girona's official announcement, already in his first season he led the team to promotion through the play-offs, completed with a victory against Tenerife in the final. That return to La Liga was the foundation for building a team that in the following years became one of the most recognisable projects in Spanish football. Girona under Míchel did not rely only on a fight for survival, but developed a brave, highly organised and attack-minded style of play that brought the club wider attention.
The greatest competitive peak came in the 2023/24 season, when Girona finished third in La Liga with 81 points. In its own review of 2024, the club stressed that it had ended the season behind Real Madrid and Barcelona and secured qualification for the Champions League. It was a historic achievement for a club whose identity had long been tied to development, more modest resources and the fight for stability in the elite tier. Qualification for the Champions League was not only a sporting success, but also confirmation that Girona, at least in that cycle, had managed to move beyond the usual expectations for a club of its size.
According to UEFA's official announcement and competition documentation, Girona were part of the Champions League in the 2024/25 season, marking their first entry into that competition. That European step forward further increased the club's visibility, but it also brought a burden that often proves demanding for teams with a shorter bench and more limited experience on several fronts. After a historic season, it was difficult to maintain the same level, especially with changes in the squad, higher expectations and a match rhythm that requires depth and continuity. The consequence was a season in which Girona went from a European breakthrough to a fight for bare top-flight status.
The club thanked the coach and staff
In its official statement, Girona thanked Míchel for the dedication, commitment and professionalism with which he led the first team. The club particularly highlighted his approachable and respectful relationship with all structures, from supporters and members to employees and the board. Such a tone in the statement shows that the parting was not presented as a simple cutting of responsibility after relegation, but as the end of a cycle that, despite an unsuccessful finale, marked a major part of the club's history. Girona also stressed that Míchel had been a key person in the sporting growth and consolidation of a recognisable playing model.
In the same announcement, the club stated that cooperation with the members of his coaching staff was also ending. Salva Fúnez, David Porcel and Juan Carlos Balaguer were mentioned as professionals who contributed to the daily work of the first team. This is an important detail because successful cycles rarely depend only on the head coach, especially in a club that in a few years travelled the road from the Segunda to the Champions League. The coaching staff was part of a process in which goals, pressure and standards changed, from the fight for promotion to appearances against the strongest European opponents.
The official announcement does not go into details about the next coach or concrete moves in rebuilding the team. According to the available information, Girona have so far confirmed only the end of Míchel's mandate and the departure of his staff. This means that the question of a successor and squad reconstruction will be the central topics in the period ahead. A return to the second tier usually brings a different financial framework, changes in the dressing room and the need to define a sporting plan quickly, especially when a club wants to remain immediately competitive for a return to La Liga.
A fall after a historic rise
Girona have in recent years been one of the most interesting examples of rapid sporting growth in Spanish football. According to City Football Group data, the club has been part of that football group since 2017, and plays its home matches at the Montilivi stadium. In such an organisational environment, Girona gradually developed a model that combined smart market activity, loans, player development and a coaching identity. Míchel was the visible face of the project in that process because he gave the team a style recognisable for active play, brave build-up with the ball and an effort to play proactively even against stronger opponents.
Relegation, however, raises the question of the sustainability of such a rise. After the 2023/24 season, Girona entered a period in which they had to confirm results, deal with European obligations and at the same time maintain stability in the domestic league. In football terms, the difference between fighting for Europe and fighting for survival can shrink quickly in La Liga if a team loses continuity, if the balance of the squad changes or if a run of weaker results turns into a psychological burden. In the closing stages of the 2025/26 season, Girona carried exactly that burden until the final round.
The comparison between third place and relegation two years later shows how sensitive modern football is to changes in form, finances and team structure. Clubs outside the narrowest elite often have to develop players, compensate for departures and maintain results at the same time, which is especially demanding after a sudden European breakthrough. During Míchel's mandate, Girona showed how high they could reach when idea, execution and trust in the coach aligned. The last season showed the other side of the same process: when the balance is disturbed, the fall can be as fast as the rise.
Míchel leaves with a legacy that goes beyond the final season
Although the ending comes after relegation, Míchel's legacy at Girona will not be reduced only to the 2025/26 season. According to the club statement, his mandate included promotion to the First Division, the consolidation of a recognisable style and the historic third place that brought the Champions League. In sporting terms, it is a journey that changed the perception of Girona in Spain and beyond. A club that until recently had been seen as ambitious but still a smaller top-flight side became, under Míchel, a team capable of outplaying more renowned opponents and competing for the highest positions.
For the coach himself, this period remains the most important stage of his career so far. Before Girona, he managed Rayo Vallecano and Huesca, while in Catalonia he received room for longer-term work that resulted in the club's greatest successes. The parting after relegation therefore has a double image: on one side, it ends under the pressure of results and a return to the Segunda; on the other, it ends after a cycle that brought Girona what they had not previously had, from a stable identity to a debut appearance in the Champions League. That is precisely why the tone of the club announcement was grateful, not exclusively critical.
A demanding period of adjustment now follows for Girona. The club must choose a new coach, assess which players can remain in the project and align its ambitions with the reality of second-division competition. Segunda División is often unpredictable and physically demanding, and a return to La Liga does not depend only on reputation or recent successes. Míchel leaves behind a standard that will not be easy to repeat, but also a foundation on which a new attempt at return can be built. In that sense, his departure marks the end of an era, but it does not erase the fact that it was precisely that era that brought Girona to the highest points in its modern history.
Sources:
- Girona FC – official announcement on the departure of Míchel Sánchez and his coaching staff (link)
- Girona FC – official report from the Girona - Elche 1:1 match in the 38th round of La Liga (link)
- Girona FC – official match record and statistics for Girona - Elche at Montilivi (link)
- LaLiga – official LaLiga EA Sports standings for the 2025/26 season (link)
- Girona FC – official review of the historic year 2024 and third place with 81 points (link)
- UEFA – official overview of the 2024/25 Champions League (link)
- City Football Group – Girona profile within the group and basic club context (link)
- El País – report on the official confirmation of the end of Míchel's era at Girona and the record of his mandate (link)