Espanyol relives ghosts of the past at Mestalla

BarcelonaAt Mestalla, on May 28, 2023, Espanyol experienced one of the the most painful chapters of its history It was there that the club's last relegation was sealed, with a goal conceded in the 94th minute and the invaluable assistance of referee Jesús Gil Manzano and VAR. Almost a thousand days have passed, but every time the Espanyol players set foot in Valencia's stadium, they remember Sergi Darder's tears, the image of that cruel outcome that could have mortgaged the future of a reborn team, which yesterday visited the scene of the events now in European qualification positions.

Even so, against a depleted opponent fighting to avoid relegation, they couldn't erase the bad memory that has haunted them for two and a half years. Despite goals from Terrats and Urko, and without the significance of that debacle, Espanyol suffered another controversial defeat in Valencia (3-2), due to a harsh penalty awarded in stoppage time by Rubén Sánchez, and have only managed one point in 2026.

From that cursed day of the promotion, Leandro Cabrera, Fernando Calero, Edu Expósito and Javi Puado are still at Espanyol, who didn't play yesterday because suffers a serious injuryOmar El Hilali was also absent from the starting eleven due to suspension, as was Tyrhys Dolan, who was left out for tactical reasons. Rubén Sánchez and Ramon Terrats were the main surprises in a match that quickly turned against the home side, who saw Hugo Duro open the scoring in the first quarter of an hour after getting behind the Catalan defense. Manolo González, who prioritizes long, uneventful matches away from home, was furious at his players' passivity, which allowed Lucas Beltrán to receive the ball, advance forward, and thread a brilliant through ball to the home striker, who left Marko Dmitrovic on the ground and tapped the ball in.

How did it happen last Friday against GironaEspanyol, imprecise as they were, had to take the initiative. And, like in rugby, they gradually gained ground, mainly through free kicks and corner kicks; however, they barely troubled the Valencia goal, who were comfortable defending near Stole Dimitrievski's area and waiting to launch a counter-attack.

A Black 2026

Pere Milla, Espanyol's top scorer, is the team's barometer; yesterday, like the rest of the squad, the striker from Lleida looked uncomfortable, unable to replicate his form from the first half of the season, and this was evident in a couple of unfortunate shots. One sailed high over the bar, and the other, a direct free kick, crashed into the wall. In the 50th minute, Manolo González substituted him with Kike García. Expósito also came on for Pol Lozano, in the Galician coach's attempt to inject some energy into the team given their inability to trouble Valencia.

And so it worked, because in the very next action after the substitutions, Espanyol equalized. Following a throw-in from Rubén Sánchez, Jofre Carreras collected the ball and delivered a cross-shot that ended with a close-range finish from Terrats, who leveled the score. It was the Catalan player's first goal for Espanyol. a parrot at heart who still feels the pain of the 2023 relegation.

But this Espanyol isn't as reliable as the one from late 2025, and, just like against Levante, they conceded right after scoring. It was on a quick counter-attack by the home side that Cömert headed home from close range after a cross from Danjuma. Once again, Manolo González, who had insisted beforehand that Valencia couldn't afford to let them run, looked furious.

His expression changed instantly when he saw a long-range shot from Urko González, seemingly harmless, deflect off an opponent and become 2-2, marking the Basque midfielder's first professional goal – he had only scored once before, in a friendly with Real Sociedad. Kike almost turned the game around, but Dmitrievski's foot prevented it. And in a crazy end to the match, well past the 90th minute, the referee awarded a harsh penalty against Rubén Sánchez, which Ramazani converted to make it 3-2. Mestalla is a cursed ground for Espanyol.