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Espanyol vs. Real Madrid: Score and Reaction from 2016 LaLiga Match
- Updated: September 18, 2016
Real Madrid grabbed another win in LaLiga on Sunday, beating a tough Espanyol squad 2-0 at the RCDE Stadium.
Los Blancos and Espanyol were evenly matched in a sloppy first half, but a moment of genius from James Rodriguez gave the visitors the lead just before half-time. Karim Benzema doubled the lead in the second half, and the visitors controlled the proceedings from that point.
Real remain the only team that haven’t dropped any points in Spain’s top division.
As Real’s official Twitter account shared, both Toni Kroos and in-form Alvaro Morata started on the bench:
⚽️📝🏟 #RMLigaHere’s our starting line-up for tonight’s match against @RCDEspanyol!#HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/2I4gxzn1YZ
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadriden) September 18, 2016
Los Blancos almost endured a nightmare start to the match, as Sergio Ramos cheaply gave the ball away to Leo Baptistao. The centre-back was able to intervene and avert major disaster, but it came at the cost of a yellow card:
Sergio Ramos receives a yellow card three minutes into Real Madrid’s match. Elsewhere: pic.twitter.com/3UQEU63CtK
— Bleacher Report UK (@br_uk) September 18, 2016
Espanyol controlled the pace of the match early, and the RCDE Stadium treated the visitors to a chorus of whistles every time they touched the ball, leading to a difficult atmosphere to play in.
Ramos almost redeemed himself after eight minutes, powering a free header wide of the mark after he was left alone inside the box.
More poor defending from the visitors allowed Baptistao through on goal, but fortunately for Real, the former Atletico Madrid man fired his shot straight at goalkeeper Kiko Casilla. Per …
