“I remember very well the day he arrived. We were in pre-season in Marbella and he got on the bus. We didn't know him yet. We all looked at each other and said: «Who is this big, serious guy?» Then they told us he was the new goalkeeper and that he was coming from the English Charlton”, explains Máyor, then a forward for Alcorcón, in the Second Division. It was the first adventure in Spanish football for Marko Dmitrovic (Subotica, Serbia, 1992).

For Christians, Holy Saturday is a day of silence and anticipation, prior to the commemoration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, after his passion and death. For the parakeets, devout and suffering as few are, yesterday was more or less the same. They trusted that after 12 matchdays without knowing victory, they would find triumph again in Seville, where these holy days are lived intensely. They didn't, but at least they earned a point against a Betis fighting for the Champions League (0-0). Furthermore, without conceding; they hadn't achieved that since mid-December. That said, the records are daunting: this year the white-and-blues have not yet won and have accumulated five points out of 39 in 2026. And next Saturday they visit the Camp Nou.Reinforced by the club during the international break, Manolo González gave Roberto Fernández the starting position instead of the veteran Kike García. Pol Lozano also broke into the eleven, accompanied in midfield by Urko González and Edu Expósito, with the aim of containing a Betis that, as expected, took complete control of the ball from the outset. For almost half an hour of play, the Andalusians' possession - exceeding 70% - was sterile; they moved it from one side to the other, without speed or depth... until they found a gap in the white-and-blue defense and Ruibal made Dmitrovic shine.

At 17 years old, Jaume Sabaté (Badalona, 1947) was forced to abandon his electronic engineering studies because of football. His family had a lampshade business, but as he played defense for Badalona in the Second Division and was tired of traveling back and forth, he didn't have time for books. It was the 1960s.

Popular football is booming in Barcelona. For some time now, young people in the capital have been flocking to their neighborhood clubs, which have become part of their social fabric on a daily basis. This is evident in Vila de Gràcia (Europa), Sant Andreu de Palomar (UE Sant Andreu), or la Verneda i la Pau (Júpiter). In Sants, where another historic team like Unió Esportiva Sants plays, this phenomenon is not reproduced. In fact, the club is becoming increasingly distant emotionally and geographically from the neighborhood and its fans, and this is explained by the fact that it has not had a home for decades, a stadium it can call its own. “We are a neighborhood club that doesn't play in its neighborhood. The team was born and grew around the historic core of Sants, but we have been competing far from there for many years,” says Artur Balaux, a lifelong Sants fan and curator of the club's historical memory. Currently, the first team plays its home games at Camp de la Bàscula, and the youth teams are spread across this same ground, l’Energia, and l’Ibèria. All of them are located in the Marina de Port neighborhood, next to the Zona Franca.“Many times people ask me: ‘Why doesn’t Sants play in Sants?’ And I answer: ‘Because we don’t have a field.’ We are exiled from our home and increasingly uprooted from the neighborhood,” comments Joan Forcadell, the club’s president. “The chain of transmission from parents to children and from grandparents to grandchildren has been broken, and of course, we have lost a lot of fans,” confirms Balaux, who is member number 18. The social decline has been accompanied by high rental costs – the lease of the three fields accounts for about 25% of the club’s annual budget – and this has been reflected on the pitch: the first team went from Tercera RFEF to Primera Catalana, two categories below, in two years, and currently occupies a relegation spot to Segunda Catalana. In 2023, Sants was a rival of Europa and Sant Andreu; as things stand, everything suggests that next season it will be five divisions lower.”

There's no way Espanyol will win in 2026. When it's not an individual error, it's a refereeing mistake; today it was a bit of everything. After a good first half, with two goals disallowed for offside and a VAR review for a possible penalty, the Blanquiazules went into halftime trailing 0-2 against Getafe, the worst possible opponent in a setting like this.

Espanyol hasn't won in almost three months. Their last victory dates back to December 22, 2025. Athletic Club's groundIn the last match of last year, they only managed four draws; that is, 4 points out of a possible 33. A calamitous run, the worst start to the year in the history of Espanyol, which in theory does not threaten the team's survival – they have an 11-point cushion above the relegation zone with ten matches remaining – but which Manolo González's team wants to break this Saturday at home against Getafe (16th, before the calendar turns up).

Even Dmitrovic, who delivered one of his best performances in a Espanyol shirt, couldn't secure their first win of the year. Although they've deserved it for weeks, the Pericos haven't won in 83 days, eleven matchdays. Today they lost again (2-1), largely because they were reduced to ten men at the start of the second half when Pickel, who scored the opening goal, was sent off for a very harsh and unnecessary tackle in midfield. And because referee De Burgos Bengoetxea allowed a clearly illegal goal by Pablo Torre, preceded by a foul on Urko González. Samu Costa completed the comeback late in the game. It's the second consecutive year of controversial refereeing decisions at Son Moix for the Pericos, who have had everything go against them since the start of the year.

"It's a bit unnerving to go out in public wearing Espanyol colors. You might get inappropriate looks or hear some off-color comments; I think most Espanyol fans have thought about it at some point. There are even some who, on match days, don't put on their scarf or shirt until they get to Cornellà, when they feel they're in a safe environment," said the Espanyol supporter. Barcelona Half Marathon"I wondered whether to do it; I didn't want to feel uncomfortable. But quite the opposite, it was an amazing experience. People were calling out to me, 'Come on, Perico!' or 'Long live Espanyol!' It was very moving to hear strangers cheering me on because they shared my love for the club," he adds with a smile.

The last time Oviedo visited Cornellà-El Prat was on the day of the San Juan festival of 2024The shortest night of the year. More than one Espanyol fan returned home as the sun rose after celebrating Espanyol's promotion to La Liga, sealed with two goals from Javi Puado, who was absent yesterday due to a long-term injury. Manolo González was there, though, and he has an unforgettable memory of that festive Sunday. Since then, things have changed a lot for the Pericos, who have established themselves in the First Division and are coming off a historic end to 2025. But this year they haven't seen the light at the end of the tunnel. Even at home against the bottom-placed team, an Oviedo side practically relegated, Manolo González's men couldn't achieve their first victory of 2026. Kike García's goal only served to draw (1-1); that's 4 points out of 30 for an Espanyol side in crisis, for whom the league season is going to be very long if they don't win soon.

Emilio Montiagut still remembers the sweltering heat of the spring of 2010 in Ouagadougou. At the time, he was a scout for Espanyol, and the club sent him to Burkina Faso to look for young talent in "a kind of footballing talent show" with players from different parts of the African continent. "There were more than a hundred, and every day I watched six or seven matches," says the Espanyol scout, who noted down the name of Eric Bertrand Bailly from Ivory Coast: "He played full-back, defensive midfielder, and center-back; he was a physical marvel, a spectacular footballer." He was fifteen years old and was represented by a regional branch of Promoesport, the agency that organized those days in the heart of West Africa. Upon his return, Montiagut recommended the boy to the club, and Antonio Morales, advisor and head of the youth football clubThey acquired 50% of the player's rights at no cost – Espanyol could have bought an additional 30% for €200,000. In return, Eric, who was still a child, moved to Barcelona to live and train at the Catalan club's youth academy. For a long time, he couldn't compete due to problems with his paperwork. "He arrived with nothing. I remember giving him clothes; he didn't know the language, and we enrolled him in a vocational training program. He was humble and polite, and always smiling. He was very clear that he wanted to be a professional footballer to help his family," explains Ramon Guerrero, director of the residence.

There's no way around it. Whether they play well or badly, Espanyol can't find a way to win again, something that hasn't happened since the end of last year. And it's already started in March. Against Elche, the second-worst team of 2026 after Espanyol themselves, they couldn't manage it either, despite playing a great match (2-2). After taking the lead twice with a fantastic goal from Kike García and another from Carlos Romero, a poor clearance from Pol Lozano and an unfortunate handball by Carlos Romero in the dying minutes condemned them. If they don't win soon, the league season could become a long and arduous one for Espanyol.

One of the first decisions Fran Garagarza made when he took over as sporting director of Espanyol was to stop the signing of Ferran Costa for Espanyol B and sign Manolo GonzálezHe wanted a more experienced profile, a coach who had battled for years in the mud of the Second Division RFEF. Having rejected higher-paying offers from higher-level clubs, such as Hércules, on July 3, 2023, the Galician became the coach of Espanyol's reserve team.

There's no way Espanyol can take flight. Despite a strong performance on the pitch, befitting a Champions League team, with an early goal, the Blanquiazules suffered another defeat (4-2) and have accumulated just two points out of a possible 24 in 2026. A version low cost from Atlético de Madrid that thrashed BarçaA brilliant second half, with Sorloth as the star, was enough to crush the spirits of Espanyol, who had hoped the point against Celta would set them free. Well, no, even though things quickly turned in their favor. Manolo González's main obsession was to keep a clean sheet again – the last time he achieved it was... December 13—which is why at the Metropolitano he included Riedel in the starting eleven and opted for a five-man defense; without Expósito, with a more combative than imaginative midfield, and with Kike García leading the line instead of Roberto. The initial game plan was clear: protect, try to win the ball back, and launch attacks with the speed of Dolan and Jofre.

"I've already told the physio to have some dates ready. If the game is stopped, I'll try to eat and drink something before halftime. If I can't, I'll do it in the locker room," explains Yaya Sidibe, a player for Badalonawho plays this Sunday at six in the afternoon. By the time the match begins, it will have been almost 12 hours since the defender of Malian origin last ate or drank water: Sidibe is Muslim and – like the vast majority of footballers in Catalonia who are followers of Islam, as in the case of Lamine YamalOmar el Hilali and Azzedine Ounahi are observing Ramadan, which began on Wednesday. This means that for a month, sacred to them, they will fast from sunrise to sunset, which on Sunday is scheduled for 6:34 p.m., and will rise in the early hours to eat and pray.

On Friday, October 17, 2025, Espanyol beat Oviedo at the Tartiere stadium and moved into the top six, securing a European qualification spot. Since then, they have never relinquished their privileged positions in La Liga, although yesterday they almost did so thanks to Ferran Jutglà, the former captain of the reserve team who left the club in the summer of 2021 because the sporting director, Rufete, felt he lacked the potential for the first team, and Bor 2019, following Espanyol's last European qualification, who was booed upon his return to Barcelona. A stunning goal from Kike García and another from Dolan prevented this, lifting the home side off the canvas. Playing with more heart than head, and with the crucial intervention of Manolo González, they managed to secure a 2-2 draw after five consecutive defeats, but fell just short of a victory.

Espanyol hit rock bottom at the Estadio de la Cerámica. The thrashing inflicted by Villarreal, who scored four goals in 20 minutes, held a mirror up to Manolo González's men. The disastrous episode experienced last Monday in La Plana Baixa is the epitome of a tragic 2026 for Espanyol, who since New Year's Eve have only managed one point out of a possible 18 and have suffered four consecutive defeats.

Espanyol sorely missed Carlos Romero at the Estadio de la Cerámica. The left-back is owned by Villarreal and didn't play last night due to a clause in his loan agreement with the Catalan club. José Salinas played in his place, becoming the unwitting protagonist of Villarreal's first two goals, which dismantled Espanyol like a sugar cube, resulting in a humiliating 4-1 defeat. It was the worst night of a season that could have been historic, but which in 2026 is turning into a martyrdom of the last eighteen.

2026 has started off on the wrong foot for Espanyol, who after a brilliant end to the year, with five consecutive victoriesThey have now gone five games without a win, although they remain in European qualification positions. They are without Javi Puado, who is out with a long-term injury. Luka KoleoshoWith the departure of [name missing] to Paris FC and the young Javi Hernández on loan at Mirandès, the only new face in the Espanyol squad is Cyril Ngonge (Uccle, 2000), a Belgian striker on loan from Napoli, the reigning Italian league champions. "I'm intuitive, technically gifted, and unpredictable. I also have an eye for goal," said Ngonge at his presentation. He prefers to play as a second striker or right winger, and Napoli paid Hellas Verona €20 million for him two years ago. If Espanyol wants to make the move permanent at the end of the season, they will have to pay €16 million.

"When they explained to us that they would be filming a series with us, we didn't imagine the magnitude of the story. We're a Third Division RFEF team... and we have seven or eight people following us around all day; none of us had ever experienced anything like this. It's very impactful!" emphasizes Josu Martínez, one of the most high-profile players in Catalan amateur football. CF Badalona, transformed into a kind of film set since October.

Alavés promoted their match against Espanyol with Txoria Txori, a Basque poem turned into a protest song thanks to Mikel Laboa, who in 1968 called for freedom, which he illustrated with a bird –choria– whose wings, if clipped, would cease to be a bird... and to be free. It was a prelude, because last night the Vitoria fans clipped the wings of the Espanyol fans, identified with the bird on the poster, who collapsed against the worst away team in the league (1-2). Their 2026 is dismal: with the defeat, they have only managed two points out of a possible 15 this year; even so, they remain in a European qualification spot.