A small football team from Catalonia claimed a hugely symbolic victory over Real Madrid

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos can’t believe the Girona victory.Reuters

• Catalan club Girona beat Real Madrid 2-1 victory just two days after the region declared independence.
• Real struck first through Isco but Girona scored twice in the second half to secure the win.
• Catalan president Carles Puigdemont revelled in the triumph.

As footballing victories go, this was pretty symbolic. As the crisis over Catalonia’s independence reached fever pitch this weekend, a small team from the region took on La Liga titan Real Madrid — and won.

Newly promoted Girona, the club supported by Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, beat the defending champions just two days after Catalonia declared independence from Spain.

Spanish midfielder Isco gave Real a 1-0 lead after just 12 minutes. However, the Galácticos slipped behind in the second half after Cristhian Stuani’s equaliser and Portu’s back-heeled winner gave Girona a historic victory.

It was, after all, Real Madrid’s first-ever trip to Girona, a side making its debut appearance in La Liga — the Spanish equivalent of the Premier League.

Puigdemont tweeted his delight at the result. “Congratulations,” he said:

A number of Girona fans showed support for the independence cause by holding up Catalan flags during the match at the Montilivi Stadium.

With the win, Girona climbed to 12th in the La Liga table. Real, meanwhile, slipped to third and is now 8 points behind league leaders FC Barcelona.