The Spaniard ends his torment

BarcelonaThe Espanyol nightmare is over, which last night left behind months of suffering and frustration, the worst in the careers of Manolo González and a good part of his footballers. At El Sadar, a cursed ground where the white and blues headed for the Second Division for the first time in the 21st century, they secured permanence with a goal from Carlos Romero and another from Kike García (1-2). Now, the 'periquitos' can breathe a sigh of relief, having started the year dreaming of Europe and ending the season with their backs to the wall... but with 45 points. All this, thanks to two wins in four days after almost five months without achieving one. Such is football.

Espanyol does not settle for a draw

Pere Milla and Kike García, heroes against Sevilla, broke into Manolo González's starting eleven at El Sadar. Also Tyrhys Dolan, who with a poisoned cross that almost ended up in the net made it very clear that the blue and whites were not signing for a draw.

With the victory, they didn't need to pull out the drama calculator, they secured mathematical permanence without depending on what happened in the other fields. Osasuna also responded with a strong shot from Budimir that went over Marko Dmitrovic's crossbar. Shortly after, Espanyol's striker from Lleida came even closer to scoring with a deflected shot from inside the box. It didn't look like a biscotto.

Carlos Romero confirmed it. After a direct free-kick that Edu Expósito hit against the wall, the Valencian player unleashed a shot unstoppable for Sergio Herrera. 0-1 from a full-back who only knows how to score great goals. And who also prevents them, because five minutes later he saved the draw on the line. Dmitrovic, with his chest, had made the first great save of the afternoon from a shot by Rubén García. Osasuna reacted, pressing the 'pericos' fiercely and, by trying, found the path to the goal with a shot from outside the area by Víctor Muñoz that surprised the Serbian goalkeeper of Espanyol.

Kike García is on a scoring streak

But this team has freed itself mentally, has regained the confidence lost after 142 long days without winning, and got up off the ground thanks to a great collective play that ended with a death pass from Dolan to Kike García, scorer again this week. 1-2 and nerves at El Sadar because Osasuna, with 42 points, was getting into a real mess.

The final minutes felt long for Espanyol, who defended themselves like a cornered cat and saw Dmitrovic make a great save on a header from Budimir that was going in. The 600 'periquitos' who traveled to El Sadar celebrated it like a goal, having traveled almost 1,000 kilometers by bus in 24 hours and who, like Manolo and his players, with the final whistle shouted loudly that Espanyol is in the First Division.