Until the 2-3, the clash seemed totally sentenced. In fact, Real dominated completely in most of the match. In the closing stages, however, the host believed in the comeback and, despite not completing it, he changed his image and his feelings.
with this resultReal Sociedad returns to the path of triumph after three official matches without winning (Barcelona in the Cup and Real Madrid and Valladolid in LaLiga). The parakeets, despite their final reaction, do not take flight and remain on the brink of descent.
Espanyol started with impetus. A Calero header after four minutes, after a cross from Darder, put Remiro’s reflexes to the test, and he avoided the first goal of the night. La Real took longer to enter, but Oyarzabal replied with a long shot after ten minutes.
Those of Imanol little by little showed their verticality and danger, adjusting to the match. Kubo insisted against the blue and white goal after a quarter of an hour, although he did not see a door. Not yet. He would get it though in the 22nd minute, when he broke the clash and left the host’s counterattacks to nothing.
Kubo scored a great goal by taking advantage of a cross from Illarramendi and transforming it into a powerful shot that went past the local goalkeeper. It was not the best moment for Espanyol, who was able to fit the second in the following bars. Sorloth was searching for him dangerously.
The Real Sociedad went to another speed and the locals showed problems to stop rival references. He was in charge of the ‘txuri urdin’ box, which effectively cut off a good chance for the parakeets just before the break. Calero was relieved by Sergi Gómez in the 44th minute.
At the restart, Diego Martínez’s changes did not stop the visiting team’s monologue, which increased their lead with a Sorloth goal in the 51st minute. The Norwegian pushed the ball after a precise cross from Oyarzabal from the left wing that collapsed the local defensive network.
Real Sociedad liked each other, they occupied the opposite field and Espanyol could not find the formula to reverse their dominance. The icing on the cake was put by Cabrera, with an own goal by clearing a Kubo cross directly into his goal in the 63rd minute. It seemed like the sentence with half an hour to go.
Darder, in 1974, opened a timid door to hope when he saw a door. The script didn’t seem like it was going to change, but Brian Oliván crossed the ball with a whiplash in minute 87 and fully ignited the hope of Espanyol. With renewed spirits, Diego Martínez’s men pursued the tie, although they were unsuccessful.
Datasheet:
2 – Espanyol: Álvaro Fernández; Óscar Gil (Rubén Sánchez, min.46), Cabrera, Calero (Sergi Gómez, min.44), Brian Oliván; Darder, Vini Souza (Gragera, min.90); Aleix Vidal (Lazo, min.69), Nico Melamed (Denis Suárez, min.46), Puado and Braithwaite.
3 – Royal Society: Remiro; Barrenetxea (Sola, min.81), Zubeldia, Le Normand, Diego Rico; Zubimendi, Illarramendi (Marín, min.81), Brais Méndez (Merino, min.71), Kubo; Oyarzabal (Navarro, min.71) and Sorloth (Carlos Fernández, min.81).
Goals: 0-1, min.23: Kubo; 0-2, min.51: Sorloth; 0-3, min.63: Cabrera (own goal); 1-3, min.74: Darder; 2-3, min.87: Brian Oliván.
Referee: Muñiz Ruiz (Galician committee). He sent off Cabrera for a double yellow card (min.80 and min.94). He admonished Óscar Gil (min.18), Braithwaite (min.57) and Carlos Fernández (min.90).
Incidences: Match corresponding to the twenty-first day of LaLiga Santander played at the RCDE Stadium in front of 15,867 spectators.
