BARCELONA, JANUARY 4
Goalkeeper Joan García shrugged off the jeers and vitriol in his return to Espanyol and Barcelona teammate Fermín López set up two late goals for a 2-0 victory in a heated Catalan derby on Saturday.
Fermín assisted fellow substitutes Dani Olmo and Robert Lewandowski in the 86th and 90th minutes to tilt the match in favor of the La Liga leaders.
But the credit for the win went to García, who made superb saves to frustrate an Espanyol attack that dominated all but the final period.
The final score hid a superb effort by fifth-placed Espanyol. Pere Milla and Roberto Fernández drew save after save from García, who was playing his first game at Espanyol since he left the "parakeets" last summer for its top rival. His highlight came in the 39th when García used a reflex one-hand save to paw a point-blank header by Milla over his crossbar.
Espanyol went as far as installing a thin mesh barrier behind the goals at RCDE Stadium to impede any object from being thrown toward the goalie from the stands. That did not dissuade the section of the club's most fervent young supporters from holding up signs with the image of a rat in Barcelona's burgundy-and-blue colors while shouting at García, a former fan favorite.
"Espanyol played a fantastic game. We didn't deserve it (the win)," Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said. "I have to say thank you to Joan García. He played an unbelievable match. He is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and we had the players off the bench who showed the quality this team has."
Flick also credited Espanyol coach Manolo González for having given García the "confidence" to grow last season, when he caught the eye of many top clubs in Europe.
"(García) plays for us now and he has played unbelievable all season. He played fantastic and the clean sheet today was his responsibility."
Olmo broke through for Barcelona when he used one smooth touch to lob a pass by Fermín over Espanyol goalie Marko Dimitrovic. Fermín then followed that by dribbling past his marker inside the right side of the box before laying off for Lewandowski to finish off Espanyol.
Before that late burst by Barcelona, the action had mostly been in García's box where he made three stops to turn back Roberto in the second half.
The loss broke a run of five straight victories by Espanyol, its best winning run since the 1998-99 season.
"Today was a day to win and we let it get away from us," Espanyol's González said.
Next up for Barcelona is a trip to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup along with Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Athletic Bilbao from Jan. 7-11.
Villarreal wins, Valencia loses
Barcelona increased its lead over second-placed Real Madrid to seven points before the latter hosts Real Betis on Sunday.
Villarreal beat Elche 3-1 to end a run of three straight losses across the league, Champions League and Copa del Rey. The victory on the road ensured Villarreal maintained third place in the table 11 points behind Barcelona.
It was the first home loss for Elche since it returned to the top flight this season in surprisingly strong style.
Borja Iglesias scored twice as Celta Vigo routed Valencia 4-1 at home, leaving the visitor on the brink of the relegation zone after just one win in 13 rounds.
"The numbers speak for themselves," beleaguered Valencia coach Carlos Corberán said.
Also, Athletic Bilbao drew at Osasuna 1-1.