Girona visits Rayo Vallecano on Monday in the last match of LaLiga EA Sports matchday 35, a fixture that arrives with Girona clinging to top-flight survival and Abel Ruiz back in the squad.
The Catalans go to Vallecas one point above the relegation zone and with the kickoff scheduled for 21.00 hours, a point swing could change their status before the season’s final run. Girona have scored 36 goals and conceded 51 this campaign; their top scorer Vanat, who netted 10 times in 29 matches, was ruled out for the rest of the season with a hamstring injury about a month ago.
That absence has left Girona short of natural central strikers for much of the year, though Stuani—39 and under contract until this summer—remains a possible option. Stuani has four goals in 18 appearances this season, three from the penalty spot; he has started only two matches and logged 355 minutes. Last season he found form late, scoring 11 goals with five of them coming in the final seven matchdays, a reminder he can still influence endings.
Rayo arrive with a much healthier defensive record: they are the sixth team that has conceded the fewest goals in LaLiga. The supplementary figures place Rayo on 42 points in 11th and Girona on 38 points in 17th, underscoring how close Girona sit to trouble with only a handful of matches left.
The recent sequence has not helped Girona’s cause. After their victory against Villarreal and a draw at the Bernabéu in early April that briefly strengthened their position, Girona failed to win in the four matches that followed. That run left them scrambling and forced the club to weigh the return of Abel Ruiz against a still-unsettled forward group.
On Sunday, speaking ahead of the trip to Vallecas, Míchel said LaLiga was so tight that two or three bad results could undo progress, but insisted the team had improved and were ready for the challenge. He acknowledged concern and responsibility inside the group while stressing the work being done to correct course.
The tension is straightforward: Girona need goals and stability at the back but lack a fully fit, high-volume scorer. Vanat’s season-ending injury removed the team’s leading threat and Abel Ruiz’s return is timely but may not instantly restore the rhythm Girona need. Stuani’s limited minutes this season mean relying on him is asking for a late-career spark similar to last year’s finish, not a baseline solution.
For Rayo, whose recent European exploits have included securing a place in the UEFA Conference League final, the domestic fixture is an opportunity to close the season with momentum and to make life difficult for a team fighting relegation. Girona’s defensive record — 51 goals conceded — gives Rayo reason to push for a decisive result in Vallecas.
What happens next is simple and immediate: a win, draw or loss on Monday will reshape Girona’s last three fixtures and the pressure they face. If Míchel’s assessment that the squad has improved and is prepared holds up under Vallecas lights, Abel Ruiz’s return could be the thin edge that keeps Girona clear. If it does not, Girona risk sliding into a battle for survival that they will have little margin to lose.
