The 52 minutes that Espanyol had to play outnumbered against Oviedo, for the direct red card that Daniel Jesús Trujillo Suárez showed Dídac Vilà at the request of the VAR –first the referee had shown a yellow for the hard tackle from the side on Juanjo Nieto–, have been the greatest damage experienced by parrots this season in terms of expulsions, and that there have been many more minutes with ten than against ten.
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* Data updated as of March 10, 2021
Total, In up to 145 minutes of the 28 days of the Second Division, Espanyol has played in numerical inferiority, for only seven in superiority, the final moments of the match against Lugo, at Anxo Carro, which despite running out of Marcelo Djaló did not alter the score, which was already 1-1. The same thing had happened until last Friday, when Oviedo did take advantage of the fact that he acted with one more to launch a counter that converted the 1-0 that reigned before the red to Dídac in the final 1-1, great goal from Nahuel Leiva. Two points less for Espanyol, precisely those that deprive them of continuing in the direct promotion zone.
Miguelón, sent off at Leganés-Espanyol.
JESUS ALVAREZ ORIHUELA (DIARIO AS)
Nevertheless, the previous three expulsions had no direct impact on the sign of the match. They did not have it the six minutes in which Espanyol played without Marc Roca at home against Mallorca (It remained 0-0). Neither in Butarque against Leganés, although it is true that in those 46 minutes without Miguelón Llambrich it went from 1-0 to 2-0. And the score was not moved from 1-0 in favor of Las Palmas when it was Lluís López who was ‘absent’ for 41 minutes for a controversial expulsion.
Obviously, the sign of the game could be another in those matches if the 90 minutes had been played 11 against 11, but fable with it would be science fiction. The only certainty is that last day's was the first expulsion that really affected the classification.