"We need players who are 100% from Girona" - La Liga manager calls out player for admitting his desire to play for Barcelona

Girona boss Michel has questioned Aleix Garcia's actions after the player admitted his desire to play for Barcelona in the future.

Born in Ulldecona, a municipality in Catalonia, Garcia permanently joined Girona in the summer of 2021. He previously played for the Catalan club from 2017 to 2019 on loan from Manchester City.

Garcia, however, aims to join the most successful club in the region and one of the biggest sporting institutions in the world — Barcelona. Speaking ahead of the game between the two sides on Sunday (10 December), the 26-year-old central midfielder told Movistar+ (h/t SportsMole):

"I would like to play for Barcelona. It is the club that I have followed since I was little and the one that I have always liked."

Michel has now responded to the midfielder's comments, telling reporters (h/t @Barca_Buzz):

"Aleix Garcia's statements on wanting to play for Barcelona? For me, Aleix has made a mistake. This is my message to our fans. We need players who are 100% from Girona."

Garcia, who has captained Girona 10 times already this season, is on a contract that expires in the summer of 2026. He has registered eight goals and 19 assists in 147 career appearances for Blanquivermells.

However, it remains to be seen if Barca, who were recently rocked by the news of Gavi's season-ending ACL injury, will pay heed to Garcia's desires. They signed Oriol Romeu as cover for the No. 6 role from Girona this summer but he reportedly wasn't Xavi Hernandez's preferred signing.

Garcia can play as a defensive midfielder, in the No. 8 role, and rarely, in more attacking positions. He was recently called up for Spain's two UEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers in November, where he played 45 minutes in the 3-1 win against Cyprus.

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Barcelona cannot overtake Girona this weekend

Girona have been the surprise package in LaLiga this season. They have 38 points from 15 league matches and trail league leaders Real Madrid on head-to-head record.

Barcelona, meanwhile, trail both teams by four points after the same number of matches. They secured a hugely important 1-0 win against Atletico Madrid on 3 December but they still sit four points away from the leaders.

Barca, hence, cannot overtake their Catalan rivals in the coming fixture, set to be played at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys. Girona have scored six more league goals than Xavi Hernandez's side this season but have let in four more at the other end.

The Blaugranas have won three of their last four games against Girona, with the latter securing a league draw at Camp Nou last season.