Espanyol welcomed Barcelona and Hansi Flick on Thursday in one of the most eagerly anticipated derbies of the season. In addition to the sporting rivalry, the hosts could secure their place in the league with a win, while the Azulgranas could clinch the LaLiga title with three points. And yes, it happened with a stunning goal, a work of art, a stratospheric strike from Lamine Yamal that put him on the scoresheet in the second half… and sent FC Barcelona toward their 28th league title. The Catalans won 0-2.
FC Barcelona had to fight hard to win the match (and LaLiga)
After their victory in El Clásico, FC Barcelona have a double in their hands – LaLiga and the Copa del Rey – which would come with a win in the Catalan derby and leave Espanyol reeling after three consecutive defeats, which have prevented them from mathematically securing their place in the First Division.
In the blue and white dressing room, there are no alarm bells ringing, despite these negative results. With three games to go before the end of the season, the Catalan side is fully confident of success, both in terms of numbers and the performance of the team: in the last game against Leganés, despite losing, they came back from 2-0 down to draw.
Barça were set to be crowned champions (sooner or later), and that could have happened at the Espanyol Stadium, as it did two seasons ago, which led to some disturbances among the team’s most radical fans. This was repeated a few minutes before the start of this match, with a multiple hit-and-run incident in the vicinity of the Cornellá stadium, with no serious injuries reported so far.
All in all, the opening minutes were a carbon copy of FC Barcelona’s recent visits. Flick’s team struggled more than expected to win this match, especially in the first half, which saw more chances for the home side.
The first 45 minutes ended goalless, but Espanyol had several chances to break the deadlock.
The Azulgranas failed to create any danger in the opposition’s area, despite having possession. Espanyol came out very strong and had several chances in the opening minutes, but failed to convert. The clearest chance fell to Puado, who found himself one-on-one with Szczesny in the area.
The Polish keeper managed to save the Perico striker’s shot. The match was stopped for several minutes due to a multiple collision in the vicinity of the stadium, although the authorities reported that there were no serious injuries.
For this match, and as one of the surprises as he was expected to be a substitute, Lewandowski returned to Hansi Flick’s starting lineup, who opted for a new center-back pairing: Christensen and Araújo.
Manolo González, meanwhile, made three changes from the previous game, with El Hilali returning at right-back. The Azulgranas were still in with a chance of being crowned LaLiga champions on Thursday in Cornellà. As we saw in the first half, the Pericos also wanted victory in this Catalan derby, as they needed to seal their place in the top flight for next season.
Playing with Lamine Yamal is cheating…
In a very entertaining second half, the usual suspect appeared: Lamine Yamal. He played with flair and completeness, something he hasn’t done in a long time. And he scored a real cracker at the start of the second half to open the scoring in the 53rd minute.
Lamine Yamal put Barça ahead with a great shot from outside the area that went into the top corner of the Espanyol goal. Espanyol started strongly in the first half and had several chances in the opening minutes, but failed to convert.
It was a game that was really shaping up to be typical of Barça’s season so far: struggling to score the first goal at times, but when they did, there was no stopping them. And that’s where Lamine Yamal, Gavi, and Pedri came in, reflecting the high standard they have become accustomed to under Hansi Flick.
As the minutes passed, what we saw on the pitch was very different, with the first half completely turned on its head. Hansi Flick’s team had long spells of possession against an Espanyol side that tried to keep their defensive lines intact, but found it difficult.
Espanyol also came close to scoring on four occasions in the last 15 minutes of the game, albeit intermittently. Szczesny made several saves to keep his team in the game. One of them came when Soto Grado signaled offside, but Roberto was clearly onside when he saw his shot saved by the Polish keeper. If the ball had gone in, VAR would have awarded the goal.
Fermín also had Barça singing the alirón
In the next play, the referee sent off Espanyol’s Cabrera for elbowing Lamine, which the referee deemed to be aggression. Espanyol was down to 10 men.
But at no point since then did Barça seem to have the upper hand. Because Cheddira shot, but it was well off target. The score remained 0-1.
But on the following day, Fermín López scored the goal that sealed the match and LaLiga. Barça just wanted it to be over, and they got their wish: FC Barcelona won the Spanish Super Cup, the Copa del Rey, and LaLiga. Three titles for Hansi Flick’s feisty Barça. This was the result of a hard-fought league campaign, one marked by consistency, by the difference between the team and its rivals, and by an FC Barcelona side without complexes, with a personal stamp, with the genius of Lamine Yamal, Pedri… but above all, with Flick.