Espanyol takes a giant step towards staying in the First Division
Without Puado and against the toughness of a Getafe that is reduced to ten, Manolo González's team achieves a vital victory (1-0)
Cornellà de LlobregatManolo González's Espanyol continue to cruise toward safety. The visit of Getafe was a key date for securing survival, and the Blue and Whites overcame Puado's absence and the toughness of their opponent—who would end up with ten men after Uche's expulsion—to secure a 1-0 victory thanks to a solitary goal from Kumbulla.
Against Getafe, they had to face an almost unprecedented scenario this 2025 at home: facing a team with little intention, a group of José Bordalás's soldiers more willing to defend than to play. The match was a battle to win the precious trophy of peace of mind that means leaving the specter of relegation far behind. The task was not easy, but the rewards of continuing to stay afloat and the opportunity to bring new joy to the 25,000 fans in attendance on Good Friday were motivation enough.
The Madrid team's roadmap was as obvious as it was annoying: fight for every ball to the limit and take advantage of any isolated action, dead balls, or counterattacks to pinch and then retreat. It fell to Burgos Bengoetxea to curb Getafe's aggressiveness, and before the 15th minute, he had already shown the first yellow card, but he didn't follow that standard, and that benefited Bordalás's team while infuriating the fans.
The story for Espanyol involved chewing on a sandwich of stones against a tiresome opponent. The most stimulating opportunity before the goal was a play in which Alderete arrived a second early to steal the ball from Antoniu Roca. The center-back brought him down, but was saved by having touched the ball first. Getafe's closest come mostly from corners or crosses. Thus came a tight shot from Terrats that tested the always reliable Joan.
Key save from Joan Garcia before Uche's expulsion
It seemed difficult to break the Madrid side's defensive structure, but Espanyol found the gap in the same way Getafe had tried the most: from a corner. Kumbulla's faith and Domingos Duarte's lack of forcefulness allowed the Blue and Whites to open the scoring shortly before halftime. The goal was a treasure to be treasured, and Joan had his moment of glory once again when Arambarri scared the team with a superb header that met a feline hand from the Sallent goalkeeper.
Arambarri's opportunity would be the last ray of light for a Getafe side that, like the previous matchday, was once again down to a man. Christantus Uche lost his temper and made a savage tackle with his studs on Jofre, which, after a review on the monitor, resulted in a clear expulsion.
From then on, things went downhill, but Getafe pressed with intense final minutes in which Cheddira found the net, but was clearly offside. It was the last chance before an outburst of joy: safety was within reach. Players and fans celebrated together after the final whistle.