The Barcelona Derby doesn’t exactly set pulses racing outside of Catalonia as FC Barcelona’s dominance over RCD Espanyol has been pretty thorough dating back to 1928. In 206 league matches, Barcelona have won 120 and drawn 42, leaving Espanyol with only 44 victories.
But Wednesday’s Barcelona Derby was played in the Copa del Rey — where the magic happens. The first leg of their quarterfinal matchup at RCDE Stadium saw Barca field a strong starting XI, including Lionel Messi (the all-time leading scorer in the Barcelona Derby with 20 goals), Sergio Busquets and Gerard Pique.
With Barca flying at the top of La Liga and Espanyol mired in 14th, there was an obvious favorite here. The 23,000 in attendance were given cause for optimism following a scoreless opening 45, although both Messi and Busquets looked at their best.
15 minutes after the restart, Barca were on the verge of scoring the opener after Sergi Roberto was fouled by Esteban Granero in the box. However, Espanyol goalkeeper Diego Lopez denied Messi from the spot with a tremendous save.
¡TAPADÓN! Messi tenía el primer gol del @FCBarcelona_es de penal, pero Diego López mantiene el - #EspanyolBarça pic.twitter.com/Mtc6Az3AEh
— beIN SPORTS Español (@ESbeINSPORTS) January 17, 2018
That set the stage for this wild winner from Espanyol’s Oscar Melendo in the 88th minute.
¡GOOOOL! Un zapatazo de Melendo que @JasperCillessen no puede parar y el @RCDEspanyol ya gana - #EspanyolBarça pic.twitter.com/kms2RMfUTW
— beIN SPORTS Español (@ESbeINSPORTS) January 17, 2018
Espanyol now travel to the Camp Nou for next Thursday’s second leg having won and deprived Barca of a vital away goal. Espanyol could yet ruin their fiercest rivals dreams of a treble.
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