In the summer of 2017, Girona fans were giddy about the thought of playing in La Liga for the first time in the club's 87-year history. They were not, however, enthused about Cristhian Stuani, the journeyman striker who had been signed to score the goals to keep them in the premier division. Stuani was on the cusp of turning 31 years old. He was coming off a season in the Premier League with Middlesbrough in which he scored just four times. They felt he was washed up.
"The sensations fans had about Stuani were not good," says Lluis Bosch, president of Penya Gironina, a Girona supporters club.