La Liga 2016/17: Espanyol 0-3 Barcelona, 5 talking points
A game of two halves ended with Barcelona winning the Catalan derby 3-0. Two goals from Luis Suarez and one from Ivan Rakitic sealed the win for Barcelona in the second half after both sides went into half time 0-0. The last time Espanyol beat their rivals was in 2007 and their abysmal record against Barcelona continued.
Here are the talking points from the game.
#1 Espanyol start on the front foot
In a scrappy opening 20 minutes of the game, Espanyol suffocated Barcelona with their high energy, intensity and closing down which didn’t allow the latter to get into any rhythm. Barcelona tried to get on top of Espanyol but the home side stayed tight at the back and apart from a Neymar half chance, which David Lopez blocked superbly, the Blaugrana did not create many chances.
Espanyol’s physical approach to the game stopped the visitors in their tracks, preventing them from creating many chances. The home side even created a superb chance but Jurado could not find a telling finish.
They were solid and well organised at the back while their intensity and energy in midfield made it a fierce derby game to watch early on.