Espanyol loses its fear of lions

BarcelonaEspanyol lose their fear of lions. The blue and whites earned a point against Athletic Club (1-1) in a match in which they took the lead thanks to a rogue goal from Roberto Fernández who neutralised Sancet in the final stretch. Cornellà-El Prat was once again a fortress to dry up one of the teams in the best form of the League and sign a draw that keeps Manolo González's team out of the relegation zone for another week, one point behind Valencia.

Espanyol was clear that they could not lose order against one of the most dangerous attacks in the championship. Manolo González brought Urko back in a double pivot alongside Lozano, with Král slightly further forward. The idea was clear: not to let Sancet, one of Athletic's most inspired players, think clearly. The script worked and caused the Basques to look for alternatives on the wings. There, Omar stood out again by neutralizing a Berenguer who in the first round had dismantled the blue and white defense at will.

Romero had more problems, needing the help of Cabrera to dry up an Iñaki Williams who, once again, denounced an episode of racism in Cornellà-El Prat. But this time the victim was not him. "They told him fucking Moor "Maroan in a corner," explained the Athletic captain after the match. The episode occurred five years after a dozen spectators directed insults of this kind at him. The match was stopped for a few minutes, and Espanyol immediately condemned the events. "We condemn it roundly, again, again.

Unlike what happened at San Mamés, this time the Espanyol defence managed to prevail over the attack of the lions. Ernesto Valverde's men had control of the ball, but possession did not do much to harm the perico team, which has been significantly improving its defensive performance for some weeks: since the defeat at Montilivi on November 23, only one of the ten subsequent rivals, Real Sociedad, has scored two or more goals. Manolo González's defensive plan worked again thanks to the solidarity and generosity of the entire team. And if everything failed, Joan Garcia was there to clear with a great save the shots of Maroan and Iñaki Williams under the watchful eye of the Spanish coach Luis de la Fuente, present in the box at the RCDE Stadium.

The great lack of the locals was once again, for yet another match, the ability to generate danger and finish it off successfully. For several minutes, they were once again missing a midfielder with good feet to filter passes inside, as all the danger was concentrated on the wings. However, it was Espanyol who had more chances in the first half, who managed to create some interesting options on several counterattacks. Jofre tested Unai Simón's gloves with a shot from an angle, while Puado and Romero tried their luck with two shots that went wide.

Roberto Fernández scores a rogue goal

The game plan didn't change after the break: Athletic kept trying to surround Espanyol in their area, but the blue and whites didn't hesitate and kept their defensive order. They also took a step forward. Roberto Fernández, the smartest in the class, got the most out of it after putting pressure on Unai Simón, who fell asleep controlling the ball in his own area and didn't realise that they could steal his wallet. A mistake that will go down in the matchday's summaries, and which the Andalusian striker's cunning knew how to punish by scoring his second goal for Espanyol.

Ernesto Valverde made a move by bringing on Nico Williams and other players to try to break down the Espanyol wall. Manolo González also had to do so, in this case out of necessity: Urko's physical problems stripped the midfield bare. Without the Basque midfielder, Espanyol lost their presence inside, which Athletic took advantage of to equalise, a quarter of an hour from the end, with a lucky shot from Sancet that Calero deflected with his backside. The lions woke up in the final stretch, but Espanyol was not scared by their roar and ended up keeping the tie.