Villarreal 4-1 Espanyol
On paper, the two teams are separated by only two places in the table that will play on Monday night at La Ceramica, but the gap stands at eight points, and the difference is visible. The Yellow Submarine was back to its best form as Espanyol continued its bad run in 2026.
The opener saw Los Pericos start the better, with Omar El Hilali seeing his goal ruled out by Roberto Fernandez’s foul play early on. Espanyol were breaking out dangerously in what turned out to be a game of basketball, with both sides looking to be direct and quick with the ball as soon as they turned it over. What worried Manolo Gonzalez was that Villarreal’s quality in the last third game would be seen if they were given an attacking position. Ten minutes before the break, after a couple of final blocks, Georges Mikautadze converted to give the home team the lead.
pic.twitter.com/rQClxBkhXO Fal…¿Qué?
– RCD Espanyol de Barcelona (@RCDEspanyol) February 9, 2026
Espanyol continued to attack, and looked threatening, but six minutes later, Los Pericos had a mountain to climb. Gonzalez and his players were upset that the challenge in the middle of the field was not punished, which led to Alberto Moleiro hitting the post on the right side of the box. Unselfishly looking for the far post, Jose Salinas blocked it in, but the ball went past Marko Dmitrovic and into his own net.
Villarreal turned the sword early in the second half
The yellow submarine came out of the break looking for more, and what little hope Espanyol had was quickly dashed. Five minutes before the break, Moleiro found Nicolas Pepe in the middle of the box, who beat his defender, rushed into the box, and drove a low shot from the right with his left. Moleiro at this point seemed unable to contain Espanyol who looked the world away from a strong side for the past six weeks.
This time the ball worked for Mikutadze in the middle of the field, who with the space to run carried the ball towards the goal, and placed it to the left of Moleiro. The 22-year-old cut in from the right, curled his shot into the right corner, ending the game as a contest just ten minutes into the second half. Espanyol continued to come forward, but there was a collective acceptance that the game was in its infancy. Leandro Cabrera turned a corner into the front post with two minutes to go, but he neglected to celebrate.
Volvió la celebración con más aura de LaLiga.#LaLigaHighlights || #VillarrealEspanyol pic.twitter.com/t6GlZ5fd6P
– Villarreal CF (@VillarrealCF) February 9, 2026
A stunning victory for Marcelino Garcia Toral’s side, who moved up to third place, level on points with Atletico Madrid but with a game in hand. After a run of five games without a win in January, Villarreal got back on track in impressive fashion. Espanyol must be wondering when their run will end; fifth defeat in six games to start 2026, and one that leaves them now a point ahead of Celta Vigo in 7th place.
