Girona add pace and flexibility up front
Girona FC have landed a high-upside attacking piece, completing a season-long loan for Arnaut Danjuma from Villarreal. The 27-year-old arrives to bolster a frontline that thrives on speed, rotations, and direct running under head coach Míchel. The agreement runs through the end of the 2024/25 campaign, with neither club disclosing financial terms or whether a purchase option is included.
Danjuma, born in Lagos and raised in the Netherlands, offers something Girona can use right away: a wide forward who can beat a man off the dribble and finish. He’s comfortable on either wing and can lead the line if needed, a profile that fits Míchel’s fluid 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 shapes. He likes to attack from the left to cut inside onto his right foot, but he’s just as willing to stretch the back line by running in behind.
The move also speaks to Girona’s growing stature. After a breakout campaign that put the club on the European map, they need depth for the grind ahead. Danjuma’s blend of La Liga experience and European nights gives Míchel another option for a schedule that will demand rotation and different looks in attack.
What should Girona fans expect? Quick shifts of direction, a powerful first step, and shots taken early—often before defenses reset. When he’s confident and fully fit, Danjuma carries the ball at pace and forces defenders to make uncomfortable choices. That unpredictability can tilt tight games, especially against back lines that sit deep and wait.
- Role: Inverted winger or second striker, with license to attack half-spaces.
- Strengths: Acceleration, 1v1 dribbling, diagonal runs, early finishing.
- Fit: Suits Míchel’s high-tempo transitions and positional rotations.
- X-factor: Experience in Spain and Europe, able to handle big-game tempo.
There is a caveat: rhythm. Danjuma’s last two seasons were loans at Tottenham and Everton, with minutes fluctuating and form hard to sustain. Girona represents a chance to reset with a coach known for balancing structure and freedom. If he locks down a consistent role and stays healthy, he can swing matches—especially those decided by a single moment of quality.
A career that zig-zagged across Europe
Danjuma’s path to Girona has been anything but linear. He came through the PSV Eindhoven system, broke out at NEC Nijmegen, and earned a move to Club Brugge, where his raw pace began to turn heads. A switch to Bournemouth followed, and the 2020/21 season in England’s second tier was a turning point. Playing off the left, he hit form that persuaded Villarreal to bring him back to Spain in 2021.
Under Unai Emery at Villarreal, he shone early. He hit double figures in his first La Liga season and delivered in Europe during the club’s deep Champions League run. That stretch reminded everyone how dangerous he can be near the box: direct carries, quick give-and-go actions, and finishes with minimal backlift.
Loan moves then took over his story. He joined Tottenham in January 2023 and scored on his Premier League debut, but minutes were inconsistent during a turbulent period for the club. He spent 2023/24 at Everton, where injuries and system changes limited continuity again. The talent never went away; the platform did.
Internationally, Danjuma chose the Netherlands and has been capped at senior level after representing Dutch youth teams. That mix—Nigeria-born, Dutch-developed—comes with a football education grounded in technique and movement, and it shows in how he manipulates space in the final third.
From Villarreal’s point of view, the loan keeps a valuable asset active while the squad evolves. He remains under contract there beyond this season, and a productive spell in Catalonia could reset his trajectory—either back into Villarreal’s plans or toward a permanent move next summer. For Girona, it’s a smart, relatively low-risk way to add final-third punch without skewing the wage bill.
Tactically, expect Míchel to use him in a few ways. On the left, he can isolate full-backs and cut inside to shoot or slip a reverse pass. On the right, he can run the outside channel and square balls across the six-yard box. As a central forward in certain match states, he can press from the front and attack space behind a high line. The common thread is speed: get him facing the goal, not with his back to it.
Set pieces could be another lever. Danjuma’s clean strike from distance means short-corner routines and edge-of-box looks make sense, especially against teams that crowd the area. In transition, he’s the outlet you hit early. If Girona win the first duel in midfield, the second pass—often the killer—can target Danjuma in stride.
There’s also a cultural fit. Girona’s dressing room has thrived on players with a point to prove, those who arrive hungry and lean into the coach’s idea. Danjuma, eager for a stable run of games after two stop-start seasons, fits that profile. He won’t need time to learn the league, and he understands the physical and tactical demands of Spanish football.
The questions are manageable ones. Can he stay fit through the winter stretch? Will he settle quickly enough to establish chemistry with Girona’s creators? If the answers are yes, this loan has the potential to be one of the more impactful mid-tier moves in La Liga this season.
For now, Girona get what they wanted: a proven top-flight attacker who can change the tempo of a match with a single carry. For Danjuma, it’s a clear runway—minutes, responsibility, and the chance to make the loud kind of case players dream about when the calendar flips toward spring.
