Espanyol takes a nap in Leganés

BarcelonaEspanyol takes an early nap and complicates things for themselves. On a Sunday to forget, the Blue and Whites fell resoundingly at Butarque (3-2) in a disastrous match that forces the postponement of the women's team's mathematical survival for a few more days. Sara Monforte's team fell to Athletic Club, but were able to celebrate their continued presence in the top flight thanks to Betis' defeat against Barça. Next Thursday, Manolo González's men will need to win against Barça to secure their survival. Otherwise, they will have to wait until the final two matchdays to secure a goal that is within reach, but not yet fully secured.

Against Leganés, Espanyol recaptured the weak and weak away team they displayed in the final months of 2024. In the match in which they could have sealed their goal, they lacked defensive solidity or clarity of play. Manolo González tried to make up for the absences of Omar and Lozano with Jofre and Calero, two experiments that didn't pan out too well.

The Madrid side, in greater need, came out more intense and suffocated Espanyol with effective pressing. Just after the half-hour mark, Cissé snatched the ball from Urko, who fell asleep inside the box and ended up allowing the home side to open the scoring. An error uncharacteristic of the Basque midfielder, who couldn't find any clear passing lanes. Shortly after, it was Diomande who easily got rid of Calero to finally beat Joan Garcia, who can't always dress up as a superhero.

Espanyol, outplayed in every aspect of the game, tried to react at halftime. Manolo reshuffled the team, with Tejero at full-back and Véliz forming a double strike with Roberto. But the changes also failed to produce the expected response. In fact, the afternoon would become even more complicated. First, Joan Garcia came close to seeing red for a borderline challenge on Raba outside the box. Alberola Rojas initially showed him a yellow card, but after being warned by VAR, he reviewed the play and corrected the decision when he saw that the goalkeeper hadn't touched the home side's forward.

Immediately after, Leganés finished off the match with an own goal by Kumbulla, who accidentally touched a ball poorly cleared by Joan Garcia. Espanyol never managed to even tickle a Leganés side more focused on what was at stake. Cabrera and Pere Milla, in the final stretch, narrowed the gap at the top in a final stretch in which Manolo González even saved important figures like Puado and Roberto for next Thursday's derby.

A match that Espanyol could have approached as a simple formality and that will become the first of three finals to certify their survival. With a cushion of five points from relegation with nine left to play, Espanyol will need to beat Barça and hope that Leganés doesn't do it at Villarreal for salvation to be mathematically achievable. In favor of the Blue and Whites is the fact that they still have quite a few direct rivals below them with a difficult schedule. They will have to continue suffering until the calculator says otherwise.