After tonight, we know who’s the favourite guest in Barcelona – Real Madrid! Each time Los Blancos arrive at the capital of Catalonia, they drop points and leave defeated! If that was rather normal for the duels against Barcelona, who could have predicted that Madrid would fall short against Espanyol?!Who is better: Mbappe or Ronaldo?Carlo Ancelotti’s men were futile and uninspired, while the home team fought bravely and defended skillfully. That courage was the key that brought them the luck they needed to break the deadlock in the nick of time and take the whole spoils against the giants.The decisive moment occurred in the 85th minute when Carlos Romero crowned one of the rare Espanyol’s counters with a winning goal, which seriously tripped Real Madrid in the La Liga title race – 1-0.⚽️ GOAL: Carlos Romero🇪🇸 Espanyol 1-0 Real Madridpic.twitter.com/PUUIxjLouK— Goals Xtra (@GoalsXtra) February 1, 2025 Real Madrid threw the entire first half out the window, failing to make an attempt on target until Jude Bellingham’s shot in the 39th minute. Before that, Los Blancos had a disallowed goal, given that Kylian Mbappe made a foul prior to Vinicius Jr’s effort, which found Espanyol’s net.The visitors had few chances to threaten the European champions, mainly focusing on defending their goal and, judging by Madrid’s first-half performance, keeping the goalless draw at the break was not that difficult. Apart from his team’s poor display, Carlo Ancelotti had one more thing to worry about, as Antonio Rudiger was forced to leave the pitch after only a quarter of an hour due to an injury.Ambitious Saudis: Real Madrid’s Brazilian superstar to replace Neymar?!Except for a penalty shout, the crew from the capital showed nothing in the first half of the second period, as all paths towards Espanyol’s goal were closed. However, even that did not make the Italian gaffer react with a sub, as he obviously had faith in his offensive “trident” embodied in Vini, Rodrygo, and Mbappe and accompanied by Bellingham.Fifteen minutes before the end, Madrid did something notable for the first time after the break, when Rodrygo hit the post after a skillful solo effort. And then Espanyol threw their first punch, taking the lead in the 85th minute! Manolo Gonzalez’s men performed a terrific counter, which ended with Omar El Hilali’s cross and Carlos Romero’s goal – 1-0!Espanyol started the day in the relegation zone. Real Madrid are leading La Liga. FT: Espanyol 1-0 Real Madrid pic.twitter.com/iFETim7WMg— B/R Football (@brfootball) February 1, 2025 Neither Luka Modric and Brahim Diaz, nor seven minutes of added time could help Los Blancos, who had to accept that they were outsmarted by the Barcelona side and that they would suffer their third La Liga defeat of the season.LA LIGA – MATCHDAY 22Friday Leganes – Rayo Vallecano 0-1 (0-0)/Ciss 78/Saturday Getafe – Sevilla 0-0Villarreal – Valladolid 5-1 (1-0)/Perez 42, Gueye 64, Comesana 70, Barry 86, Suarez 90+1 – Amallah 90+4/Atl.Madrid – Mallorca 2-0 (1-0)/Lino 26, Griezmann 90+3/Espanyol – Real Madrid 1-0 (0-0)/Romero 85/Sunday 16.00: (1.17) Barcelona (8.00) Alaves (14.0)18.15: (2.35) Valencia (3.25) Celta (3.15)20.30: (2.95) Osasuna (3.00) Sociedad (2.65)23.00: (3.05) Betis (3.15) Ath.Bilbao (2.45)Monday 23.00: (1.70) Girona (3.60) Las Palmas (5.30)***odds are subject to change***
