Espanyol regains coherence

Nine days later, Espanyol returns to command the LaLiga SmartBank classification after Mallorca's stumble in Fuenlabrada (4-1), curiously the Blue and Whites' next rival (Thursday at 5:00 p.m. at the RCDE Stadium). A logical and coherent situation for Vicente Moreno's men, the squad with the highest budget in the category, without a doubt the rival to beat at the beginning of the season. Despite the ups and downs at the start of the second round, the parakeet team has drawn a regular line that has kept them in the upper zone for almost the entire course, now with 11 rounds to go.

“You have to play with your feet on the ground. You have to be calm as always, even when the results weren't what we wanted. You have to keep working, wanting to be first. The objective is to be up, to be first and to go up, but you have to look at each game. Thursday's is now the most important“Lluís López commented after a new coaching session.” I trust the team and the club. We will return to First, “he added.

Espanyol has been the leader 14 days of the 31 disputed, practically half of the competition. He started in that position with Albacete 3-0 but on the second day he lost that privilege to the detriment of Sporting after drawing against Mallorca. It did not take long for the blue and white to return and consolidate. From matchday 5 to 13 they were leaders, a streak forged in their defensive stability and the goals of the Raúl de Tomás and Embarba society. But two consecutive defeats against Girona and Leganés displaced them from direct promotion.

A situation that did not make the group nervous. “We were doing things well. When the results did not come out, we had the peace of mind to continue as we were and improve. We knew that this context would arrive, the rivals can puncture”, commented the central, with a few minutes after his expulsion in Las Palmas in the first meeting of 2021.

On matchday 19, Espanyol again led the table after dismissing 2020 with a victory against Almería (2-1). A joy that lasted until matchday 22. Once again, the defeat the week before against Girona (1-0) and the comeback of Rayo Vallecano (2-3) at the RCDE Stadium marked the beginning of the worst streak of the season for Moreno's team, who have now been compensated again right in the crucial stretch of the championship.