The rivalry between FC Barcelona and RCD Espanyol is a truly historic one, which dates back over a century. Here are five things you may not know about the fixture.1. FC Barcelona has won the 58% of the derbiesSince LaLiga was founded in 1929 – with both teams as founding members – these two sides have met on 175 occasions in Spanish football’s top division. FC Barcelona have won 101 of these contests (58%). RCD Espanyol have won on 34 occasions, while they’ve finished honours even 40 times.2. The day FC Barcelona won the league title against RCD Espanyol With Busquets gone, iconic Barca team is officially in history booksFC Barcelona once won the LaLiga Santander title in a Barcelona Derby against RCD Espanyol. It was on the final matchday of the 1948/49 season and they earned a 2-1 victory at home, with César Rodríguez scoring both the Blaugrana goals, to edge them ahead of closest rivals Valencia CF in the final standings. This Sunday, Barça will aim to win another LaLiga Santander title in a Barcelona Derby.##NAJAVA_MECA_7252374##3. The iconic ‘Tamudazo’Several decades after that 1949 meeting, RCD Espanyol gained some revenge as they denied FC Barcelona the 2006/07 LaLiga Santander title with a dramatic 2-2 draw at the Camp Nou. RCD Espanyol legend and captain Raúl Tamudo stepped up in the dying minutes of their encounter on the penultimate day of the season to score a brace and cost FC Barcelona two crucial points. The five points Barça dropped against RCD Espanyol that season – Frank Rijkaard’s side lost 3-1 in the reverse fixture earlier that season – cost them dearly as they went on to lose the LaLiga Santander title to Real Madrid.With Busquets gone, iconic Barca team is officially in history books4. RCD Espanyol hold the record for the biggest Barcelona Derby win in historyFC Barcelona may have the better head-to-head record in this fixture in the more than 90 years since it was first played in LaLiga but it was actually RCD Espanyol who recorded the biggest ever Barcelona Derby win: a whopping 6-0 victory in April 1951.5. Ernesto Valverde played for and coached both clubsHe may have recently been FC Barcelona coach, but Ernesto Valverde had a particularly productive spell in charge at RCD Espanyol too, between 2006 and 2008. He led the team to the 2007 UEFA Cup final, where they dramatically lost on penalties to Sevilla FC. As a player, he also played on both sides of the divide: at RCD Espanyol from 1986 to 1988 and at FC Barcelona from 1988 to 1990. Despite being one of the latest FC Barcelona coaches, between 2017 and 2020, Valverde’s connection with RCD Espanyol is so strong that Gate 89 at the RCDE Stadium still carries his name to this day.
