Tamudo’s Communiqué

An emotional Raúl Tamudo was unable to bear the emotional pressure in what most likely looks to have been his last home game in the blue and white outfit. The striker, whose family awaited him at the dressing room door, could not sum up the strength to show his emotions during the moment and instead opted to express himself through the following statement:

“I would like to thank all the season ticket holders and followers of Espanyol for all the love and support you have shown throughout the past fourteen (14) seasons. Many thanks for everything. No matter what happens in the future, my heart knows this will always be my home”.

RCD Espanyol 2 – CA Osasuna 1

Farewell party
 
The season at RCDE Stadium ended in tears, those shed by Tamudo in his emotional farewell to his supporters, who payed him a sincere ovation. The heartfelt appreciation to the career of the all time top scorer in the club’s history joined in victory against Osasuna. The red team made things difficult, but Espanyol managed a great come back on a night which is going to write a new chapter in the history of this stadium.
 
Just as Pochettino had advanced in the previous days, Osasuna had not come for a stroll, and their intentions were made clear from the onset as not even 5 minutes had gone by and they were 0-1 up. Vadócz headed to the net a ball prolonged by Dady, advancing the visitors in the score. And Osasuna did not stop their offensive efforts their, but two consecutive attempts followed it. Fortunately, nor Dady, nor Calleja were successful. Then, Espanyol realised they had to gear up if they wanted to face Osasuna looking for the three points, and Osvaldo and Ivan Alonso voiced out this intention with two goal chances.
 
The second half began as it should have began in the first. Roncaglia warned Roberto what was going to happen just some minutes afterwards, when Forlin appeared in the heart of the box to connect a spectacular volley, impossible to stop by Osasuna’s keeper. The Pericos’ impetus was to go on, and Osvaldo, just some minutes afterwards, completed the comeback with the likes of a real killer. The Argentinean striker drove the ball faster than any of his persecutors, and beat the keeper.
 
The match was finally getting the colours everyone expected, and it turned into the party everyone of us desired, leaving the best scenario for the stands to give Tamudo the best farewell after his 14 years as a Perico player, in which he has become the top scorer in the history of the club (129 league goals). 
 
Game stats:
 
RCD Espanyol: Kameni, D.García, Callejón, J.Verdú, Osvaldo (F.Marqués, min.81), Forlín, Coro, Moisés (Roncaglia, min.46), Iván L.M. (Tamudo, min.61), V.Ruiz and Amat.
 
CA Osasuna: Roberto, Azpilicueta, Monreal, M.Flaño, Masoud (Jokin Esparza, min.71), Puñal (Pandiani, min.83), Josetxo, Dady (Galán, min.71), Calleja, Vadócz and Ruper.
 
Referee: José Luis González González (Castilla y Leon). Yellow cards to Osvaldo (min.38), Amat (min.76), F.Marqués (min.91) and Calleja (min.43).
 
Goals: 0-1, Vádocz (min.5); 1-1, Forlín (min.49); 2-1, Osvaldo (min.51)
 
Incidence: 25.023 spectators

Real Zaragoza 1 – RCD Espanyol 0

Iturralde ruins it again!

Again, Iturralde turned into a big stumbling block on the road. He appeared Again, absolutely unfair, arbitrary and suspicious. An incomprehensible decision by the Basque referee let the home team get the victory from the penalty spot. How the defeat happened left in the perico souls all the bitterness and rage of those who cannot swallow that an arbitral incongruence have left the effort with no price. And this is not the first time, again with Iturralde as the main protagonist, just as he was at the Camp Nou match, where he invented another penalty to steal the points.
 
It was a really important game for both teams, but especially for Zaragoza, who were finally seeing the light they thought would never see at the end of the tunnel. And there was Iturralde to give a precious hand… Espanyol needed just one point to secure their stay at Primera División, and the blue-and-white players jumped onto the field in all confidence, being the best team during the first time. The ball control was at Espanyol’s hands, and also the best chances. Indeed, Zaragoza did not reach Kameni in danger during the whole first leg, until a shot by Colunga crashed into the side of the net seconds before the break whistle.
 
Pochettino’s lads felt comfortable, and only lack of aim at the final meters prevented them to put the 1 in the score. They controlled the tempo, the ball, and had the best chances. After half time, Gay and Pochettino seemed to have assumed that the game was to be more nervous, and the pace became even more speedy, amid a strong wind which helped little to the calmed play.
 
The match was flowing through usual lines, but then Iturralde decided the time had come for his becoming the centre of attention. A struggle between Pareja and Ander was turned into a inexistent penalty by the referee, absolutely discredited by the images everyone could witness. The action ended with a double yellow card for Pareja and the goal by Colunga, only 10 minutes before the final whistle. Espanyol tried to recompose against the local team which seemed to be celebrating the victory, and the fatc they could touch with the tip of their fingers the salvation they have fought for so long.
  
Game stats:
 
Real Zaragoza: Roberto, Contini, Pablo Amo, Colunga, Edmilson, Gabi, Abel Aguilar (Ander, min.67), Eliseu (Álex, min.92), Arizmendi (Lafita, min.74), Ponzio and Obradovic.
 
RCD Espanyol: Kameni, David García, Callejón (F.Marqués, min.73), Luis García (Coro, min.81), J.Verdú, Nico Pareja, Osvaldo (Iván L.M., min.62), Forlín, Moisés, Víctor Ruiz and Amat.
 
Referee: Eduardo Jesús Iturralde González (Basque). Yellow cards to Moisés (min.26), Pareja (min.75 and min.76), Luis García (min.76 and min.+90), Forlín (min.77), and Zaragoza players Gabi (min.31), Pablo Amo (min.66).
 
Goals: 1-0, Colunga (min.78)

Javi Chica suffers meniscus fracture

Javi Chica has to say goodbye to the rest of the season, after the medical tests he has undergone have confirmed that he suffers a fracture in the meniscus of his left knee.
 
International specialist Dr. Ramón Cugat has examined the defender’s injury, and has determined that Chica has to undergo a diagnostic and terapeutic surgical arthroscopy, after ruling out a more conservative treatment.
 
After the surgery, Chica is expected to spend two months out of the football field, which means he is to miss the last stage of the season. Even though, he is not believed to have any problem to begin with the rest of the team the next pre-season trainings.

U.D. Almería 0 – RCD Espanyol 1

Great victory in Almería… and Diego Alvés prevented his team from landing a more severe defeat.
 
At last, an away victory came. It was just a matter of patience and Espanyol had it to get a new victory in Almería, precisely the same opponent against which the perico certified salvation last season, just as they virtually did yesterday.
 
Espanyol and Almeria was balanced in all figures just before kick-off, but precisely after the whistle, things changed. The game was absolutely blue-and-white, slightly stained in black due to Alves saves, which prevented his team from landing a more severe defeat.
 
Although the match had some episodes of uncertainty, Espanyol controlled perfectly speedy forwards Crusat, Piatti or Uche by means of consistent defensive moves and the sacrifice of the midfielders.
 
With the match under control, Espanyol became not impatient and tried to dominate the midfield. Luis García had the best chance just before the bad news: Chica had to leave the game due to a knee injury. But right after the break, Espanyol showed really dynamic, just as they were in the last stage of the first half, and Forlín could again inaugurate the score, but Alves was there to prevent it. Almeria’s goalie, though, could do nothing in front of Luis Garcia’s excellent free kick.
 
With the 0-1 in their favour, Espanyol seemed to be having their best moment of the game, feeling really comfortable with the result, relying on a solid defensive line and looking towards the Andalusian goal whenever possible. Indeed, Luis and Verdu could extend the advantage, but the ball did not end inside the net. Whereas, home team piled players up in the surroundings of Kameni’s goal, looking for a crack they never found.
  
Game stats:
 
UD Almería: Diego Alves, Chico, Kalu Uche, Cisma, Crusat (Ortiz, min.83), Piatti, Michel (Juanma Ortiz, min.72), Acasiete, M’Bami, Soriano and Bernardello (Corona, min.63).
 
RCD Espanyol: Kameni, Chica (Roncaglia, min.45), Callejón, Luis García, J.Verdú (Iván L.M., min.74), Nico Pareja, Osvaldo (Sahar, min.84), Forlín, Moisés, Víctor Ruiz and Dídac.
 
Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (Madrid).
Yellow cards to Nico Pareja (min.3 and min.+90), Dídac (min.19), Forlín (min.32), Roncaglia (min.63), Moisés (min.84), Chico (min.18), Crusat (min.72), Corona (min.76), Cisma (min.86), Soriano (min.+90).
 
Goals: 0-1, Luis García (min.54)

RCD Espanyol 0 – FC Barcelona 0

Espanyol apply the brakes on FC Barcelona
 
The team disarms and deserved to beat the league leaders in a spectacular and ever-increasingly impressive stage.
 
One thing is to say or think that the match is not going to be an easy one, and the other is to come here to the EstadiRCDE and experience it for real. The blue and white team gave their all, their strength and soul and were able to disable the rival’s mechanisms, and without being partisan, were able and were deserving of the victory. The superiority and courage of the Pericos were enough to put fear into their table-topping rival who saw how all their weapons were reduced to zero by the pressure play on an Espanyol side full of team spirit and togetherness. The motivation and tremendous competitive spirit was also wrapped with the outstanding support shown in the stands and this proved to be a very able and influential 12th player. This is the RCDE Stadium and this is our Espanyol.
 
It really didn’t matter if it was FC Barcelona or not. Espanyol were never going to renounce their style of play just because one of the best teams in Europe were before them. Today more than ever, a dynamic, powerful and intense display by our lads needed to be the number one priority as well as being the perfect antidote to freezing the rival team. In the first few minutes of play it was already obvious the power of our stadium and supporters were painted ‘blue and white’ all over, which even included an Osvaldo chance on goal.
 
The recipie was working to perfection, closing down all of Barcelona’s supply lines which seemed to desintegrate. On the other hand, Espanyol seemed to gain easy access to Victor Valdes’ goal area which endured three close Perico chances in the space of half an hour. The most dangerous of which was a header by Baena that narrowly missed the post.
 
Half time was approaching and it very nearly ended with the scoreline being in Espanyol’s favour, after a pass by Callejon was superbly struck by Osvaldo and between Valdes and the post it somehow stayed out of the net. Half time arrived a few minutes after and this must have been a welcome rest for the Barcelona players! Espanyol were clearly the best team in the first half, playing to perfection by closing down the spaces, cutting off any ‘Culé’ advances and passing majestically, which gave the Pericos many more options than their rivals.
 
The half time break didn’t change Espanyol’s play at all and they continued where they left off and this really frustrated Guardiola’s men. Such was the effect that Espanyol had, that Alves saw his second booking after fouling Callejon and saw the red card. Furthermore, Xavi was not able to be his influential self in the midfield and started committing errors and fouls. The young Espanyol players, backed by Pochettino and the Club behaved and played like authentic veterans, and did not ease off their marked men.
 
The minutes passed away and Espanyol looked more and more confident and secure, not giving their rivals any options whilst at the same time were ready to pounce on any counter-attacking chance that came their way. Guardiola gave it one more shot and put Ibrahimovic on the field but even the Swede could not find the answer.
 
Espanyol took the game to Barcelona without hesitation right till the very end of the match without being too affected by Barcelona’s attacking instincts, which never created any real danger to Kameni’s goal. And then came Undiano’s final whistle that marked the end of the very first derby in our new stadium, which resulted in the confirmation of the maturity of a team where the veterans send the opposition packing, where companionship is our main strength, and where our 20 year old players stop the best players in the world with an efficiency that makes it a real pleasure to watch.
 
Game Stats:

RCD Espanyol: Kameni, Chica, Callejón (Sahar, min.83), Luis García, J.Verdú (Iván L.M., min.77), Nico Pareja, Osvaldo, Forlín, V.Ruiz, Dídac and Baena.
 
FC Barcelona: V.Valdés, Dani Alves, Piqué, Puyol, Xavi, Messi, Sergio B., Pedro (Ibrahimovic, min.82), Milito (Henry, min.56), Maxwell and Touré (Keita, min.56).
 
Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (Navarra).
Espanyol yellow cards: Osvaldo (min.5), Luis García (min.21), Baena (min.62).
FC Barcelona yellow cards: Alves (min.24 & min.61), Milito (min.32), Keita (min.80).
 
Incidents: 39.260 spectators

RCD Espanyol 3 – Atletico Madrid 0

Espanyol, a real monster at home
 
Espanyol is becoming scarier when playing at home, where thanks to an intense playing and a solid defense, is getting rid of all the opponents visiting RCDE Stadium. Yesterday it was Euro-Atlético de Madrid, among the best four in the Europa League, the victim of that personality-packed, ambitious and competitive team, which turns into a real monster when playing in front of their crowd.
 
The match was much about uncertainty before kick-off. The blue-and-white opponent is known for being a real jack-in-the-box team. This Atlético de Madrid, giving six of its good, and half a dozen of its bad side, seems to have finally found its place this season, though. Besides, needless to say, they count on a terrific offensive potential, although Kun began on the bench.
 
But Espanyol, strongest than most playing at home, was not afraid of it and stated it clear when seizing De Gea’s goal from the very beginning. Precisely, the young keeper became the miracle-man for his team after unbelievably saving two chances by Osvaldo in the first stage of the game.
 
Second half lasted not to bring what the first one, and an ungiven penalty on Osvaldo, wanted not to. Victor Ruiz tapped the ball in after placing himself perfectly to reach a lost ball after a croner kick serve, which Luis Garcia could not reach. Espanyol got its deserved price, but Quique Sánchez Flores did not hesitate, and fielded all his powder and magic: Kun Agüero.
 
Espanyol, though, was not for letting his opponent grow, the same way Osvaldo was not for letting the prize he had done so many merits for go away. The Argentinean headed as a real killer to set clearer who was the domineer of the game. Then, Atlético got their chances, with Kun showing how much danger is there on his boots. But Kameni was there, with the antidote in his gloves.
 
In the last minutes, the roughness left Atlético one man down, after a savage tackle by Ujfalusi, and that gave way for Espanyol to absolutely control the game’s tempo. The perico dominion was rewarded with another goal, by Ivan Alonso, to finish the match amid a great party, and concluding a new blue-and-white personality recital, showing how dangerous is to approach Cornelñlà-El Prat, even for European scale teams.
 
 
Game stats:
 
RCD Espanyol: Kameni, Chica, Callejón, Luis García, Nico Pareja, Osvaldo, F.Marqués (J.Verdú, min.46), Moisés (Forlín, min.68), V.Ruiz, Dídac and Baena.
 
At.Madrid: De Gea, Valera (Kun Agüero, min.55), A.López, Tiago, Forlán, Jurado, P.Assunçao (Raúl García, min.75), Juanito, Ujfalusi, Domínguez and Reyes (Salvio, min.75).
 
Referee: Miguel A. Ayza Gámez (Valencia). Yellow cards for Chica (min.41), Osvaldo (min.88), in Espanyol, and Juanito (min.73), Tiago (min.80) and Salvio (min.89), in At. Madrid. He also sent Ujfalusi off (min.84).
 
Goals: 1-0, Víctor Ruiz (min.47); 2-0, Osvaldo (min.67); 3-0, Iván L.M. (min.91)
 
Incidence: 32.620 spectators

Getafe CF 1 – RCD Espanyol 1

Espanyol unbeaten for the fourth match in a row in an intense and quick match.
 
There was no way past Getafe, who have been Espanyol’s nemesis all season, and this was reflected all week in the lead up to the match. The players and technical staff knew, they also knew that Getafe plays a simple, practical and fast flowing football, just like a fish in the water with the scoreline in its favour! It’s a major pain to play against the clock, but maintaining the ‘tempo’ of the match whilst being in front is an art that Getafe have mastered, especially in their games against Espanyol this season. This happened in the Copa del Rey (both matches) and in the league (both matches). Even though the first major chance fell to the visitors, Getafe were able to re-compose themselves quickly.
 
Five minutes into the game and Osvaldo beat Codina to the ball with a shot that hit the post and disrupted the local defense. It was the first warning that Espanyol wanted all three points despite the curse that seems to accompany Pochettino’s side on their travels. Getafe showed soon after that they were not going to make life easy for Espanyol either. Immediately Miku enabled a through ball for Pedro León and he shot wide (which is unusual for him).
 
The game was open. There were countless approaches to each others’ areas and this gave the impression that whoever gained domination of the midfield could tip the match in their favour. There was a good battle between Casquero and Boateng on one side and Moisés and Baena on the other.
 
Half an hour into the match, Pedro León got into the area and back-passed to Manu who connected and shot pass Kameni. It wasn’t a clean shot but a stumbling one where the Cameroonian goalie attempted to save it with his legs and the ball, between hesitations, eventually found its way into the back of the net. Following the goal were Getafe’s best moments of play with Espanyol’s reaction coming towards the end of the first half.
 
The half time oranges seemed to work wonders and gave Espanyol some strength and confidence. Osvaldo placed a near impossible volley just wide, this turned out to be the precursor to the goal that followed, with a clear cut strike from the front of the area that went over Codina and into the back of the net. The match started changing colour and even more so when Espanyol started dictating the rhythm of the match approching Codina’s area with greater danger, Codina on one occasion had to fully stretch himself to save a shot by Callejón.
 
Curiously, as the minutes started ticking by, the match seemed to gain intensity. At this stage any errors would have been severly punished, so both teams started positioning themselves on the field and strategically using their assets to gain some advantage. In the last action of the game Raírez Domínguez complicated things by not punishing a clear punch by Boateng to Moisés inside the area but awarding a harmless foul by Gavilán on the edge of the area in the same action.
 
 
Game Stats:
 
Getafe CF: Codina, Mané, Belenguer, Manu (Parejo, min. 68), Rafa, Boateng, Miku, Pedro León, J. Casquero, Adrián (Gavilán, min. 58) and Miguel Torres (Cortés, min. 71).
 
RCD Espanyol: Kameni, Chica, Callejón, Luis García (J. Verdú, min. 71), Nico Pareja, Osvaldo (Iván Alonso, min. 80), F.Marqués (Coro, min. 53), Moisés, V. Ruiz, Dídac and Baena
 
Referee: Rafael Ramírez Domínguez (Col. Andaluz). Yellow Cards to Rafa (min. 42), Boateng (min. 85), Parejo (min. 86), Víctor Ruiz (min. 46), Pareja (min. 54), Callejón (min. 69), Moisés (min. 85).
 
Goals: 1-0, Manu del Moral (min. 27); 1-1, Osvaldo (min. 51)
 
Incidents: Espanyol was represented in the Presidential Suite of the ‘Coliseo Alfonso Pérez’ stadium by the President, Daniel Sánchez Llibre, the vicepresident José Luis Perelló and the first team adviser, Joan Josep Bertomeu.

RCD Espanyol 0 – Sporting Gijon 0

Espanyol deserved more

Victories do not come always on Knock-out. You can also win matches, in such a competitive league as Spanish La Liga, and paralleling boxing, getting more points in the combat. You can get the triumph by being better than your opponent in determinate moments, in which you make more merits to take the victory. Today, it has been one of these days, with the bitter exception of that last step, which was never attained. Pochettino’s lads dominated their rivals, without overwhelming, and have insisted much harder than them, who only throw some hook which did not even cause any fright. It was not one of these unforgettably funny matches but no doubt Espanyol deserved more than this 0-0. The home team did not last to take the control of the game, and some minutes after Callejón had the goal in his forehead, but Juan Pablo sent the ball to corner kick with the tip of his fingers. After that it seemed more difficult for Espanyol to reach the Asturian goal. Only Osvaldo, towards the end of the first half, made the supporters jump from their seat with a brilliant move and a powerful shot, which went out next to the right post. On the other goal, Kameni had become another spectator, with a placid afternoon. The interrupted pace and the lack of opportunities remained after half time. Espanyol, though, dominated territorially, and through a bigger ball possession tried to propose more danger chances. Iván Alonso had a great one in the 75th minute, but he was not lucky. Nor was Sahar just one minute afterwards. The team was willed, just as the crowd, which played perfectly their role, was. But the watch went inexorably on. The match was becoming uglier and uglier, and that gave Sporting some extra life, although the Asturian team seemed to trust only on long-distance shots. A possible penalty on Sahar and the last header by Moisés could have moved the score, but didn’t, and Espanyol could not keep the three points in a match in which everyone had put great expectations, since a victory would have meant overtaking Sporting with a better goal average. Game stats: RCD Espanyol: Kameni, Chica, Callejón (Coro, min.88), Luis García (Iván L.M., min.58), J.Verdú, Nico Pareja, Osvaldo (Sahar, min.58), Forlín, F.Marqués, Moisés and Dídac. Real Sporting: Juan Pablo, Botía, Rivera, Bilic (Barral, min.82), Gregory, R.Canella, D.Castro, Luis Morán (Lora, min.65), Diego Camacho, De las Cuevas (Kike Mateo, min.38) and Sastre. Referee: Eduardo Jesús Iturralde González (C.Vasco). Booked Nico Pareja (min.68). Incidence: 26.724 spectadors. A minute of silence was held in the memory of August Newton Bosch, father of the directive August Newton.

RCD Espanyol 2 – Sevilla FC 0

Superlative victory

Espanyol performed last Saturday as big teams do. Just as the big, big teams play and win. Being better in every single aspect of the game, they beat and dominated one of the most important teams of the Spanish League: Sevilla FC, commonly placed among the big-4 of La Liga. Two goals by Ovaldo, both of them served by Marqués certified a triumph based on comradeship, group playing, and the fact that every single member of the team has done a perfect job. Espanyol jumped decidedly onto the pitch, knowing that their strength grows exponentially playing at home, where they fear no opponent. This is precisely what they demonstrated even before the 10th minute of the game, when Osvaldo scored the first goal of his team with an indisputable header, one of those of good old striker. Only a couple of minutes later, Callejón could have put things even better, but he did not manage to cross the ball in when facing Palop. This is precisely the moment when Sevilla started seeing the real danger behind the perico team. Then, the Andalusian began wanting to keep the ball, but before even reaching Cristian’s box, they suffered a new strong blow: they missed Navas, who had to leave the pitch due to injury. And he was not to be the only one, since Capel had to leave, too, before half time, and just before the terrific safe by Cristian, who amazingly flew to prevent Escude’s header become the equalizer. Espanyol began the second half putting into practice the successful recipe of the first one: putting into siege Palop’s goal. And they got the prize. With the same protagonists. Passing by Marqués, and Osvaldo tapping the ball in. And again, Espanyol had the chance to finish the game, with an unbelievable triple chance which ended with the only reward of Javi Márquez serious injury. The game came into their final minutes with an expectable and comprehensible prominence by Sevilla, who tried to find Cristian’s goal through high balls on Kanoute, their lighthouse player. But Espanyol defensive work was absolutely impecable, and the team showed in hierarchy and authority what they are capable of. Game stats: RCD Espanyol: C.Álvarez, Chica, J.Márquez (Baena, min.75), Callejón (Coro, min.88), Luis García, Nico Pareja, Osvaldo, F.Marqués (Iván L.M., min.69), Moisés, V.Ruiz and Dídac. Sevilla FC: Palop, Squillaci, Duscher (Negredo, min.65), Adriano C., Jesús Navas (Perotti, min.25), Zokora, Renato, Kanouté, Escudé, D.Capel (Acosta, min.42) and F.Navarro. Referee: Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz (C.Valenciano). Yellow cards to Callejón (min.36), J.Márquez (min.50), Adriano (min.40), Squillaci (min.49). Goals: 1-0, Osvaldo (min.7); 2-0, Osvaldo (min.59)