When the joy that saw them survive on the last day of last season subsided, it didn’t take long for a new wave of despair to return to the RCDE Stadium.
Espanyol fans would be bracing themselves for a tough summer. Many would not have feared relegation again in their second season returning to the top flight for the 2022/23 campaign.
Obviously, they had every reason to feel bad. Home goalkeeper Joan Garcia, without whom Espanyol would have been relegated last season, left to join local rivals Barcelona three weeks after their win over Las Palmas last weekend.
The 25 million euro buyout clause that sparked the move across town felt like a significant understatement of his real value, but it was 10 million euros more than Los Periquitos would have received had he been offloaded.
Successful loanees Roberto Fernandez, Urko Gonzalez de Zarate, Carlos Romero, and Marash Kumbulla were scheduled to return to their parent clubs. Meanwhile, long-serving star Javi Puado was out of contract and free to talk to any interested parties.
Smart summer business
Given the weak hand they played in late June, Espanyol could not have had a better window.
Of the 25 million euros received for their young goalkeeper, only about 14 million euros were reinvested in transfer funds for new players. With that, they managed to bring Roberto and Urko back to the club on permanent contracts, and also signed promising defender Clemens Riedel and supporting midfielder Charles Pickel. Villarreal’s Romero has signed another year on loan at the RCDE Stadium.
Espanyol’s recruitment team also made excellent use of the free transfer market. Marko Dmitrovic came on as safe hands in goal to reduce the blow of losing Joan Garcia. Kike Garcia, who scored 13 LaLiga goals for Alaves last season, has signed for the Catalan club to provide more competition for Roberto up front. Meanwhile, the capture of 23-year-old winger Tyrhys Dolan on a free transfer has also proved to be an inspired piece of business.
Some of those positive moves may also have helped convince Puado to sign a new five-year deal at his youth club in July.
The main players were up
Espanyol’s success so far this season has been a team effort. Apart from Romero, who has played well at left-back and looks set to make a big move next summer, there are few stars in this squad who would have the big clubs looking at them with real interest.
However, Manolo Gonzalez managed to get the best out of many of his existing players. They were solid at the back, only Villarreal scored fewer goals in LaLiga 2025/26. 34-year-old Leandro Cabrera enjoyed a strong campaign, alongside Riedel or Fernando Calero.
With the progress of the field, Pere Milla has scored five goals, while Edu Exposito has entered with five assists. Such contributions were not at all expected from the players who could be called Spanish football journeymen, despite the fact that both enjoyed other purple episodes at various points in their careers.
Having relied heavily on Puado for goals in the first half of last season, Espanyol’s attacking line-up is also stronger than it was 12 months ago. Kike and Roberto are regulars around the front, and have chipped in with seven league goals between them so far.
LaLiga’s set-piece master?
The importance of set-pieces seems to be growing in European football. The likes of Arsenal and Manchester United already have double figures for set-pieces in the Premier League this season.
That change hasn’t been so smooth in Spain’s top flight, but Espanyol are the best in that department. 30% of their goals last season came from set-pieces. At this point, they are joint leaders in set-piece goals (seven) along with Barcelona and Osasuna, and have also scored three penalties.
The latest of those strikes saw Cabrera head home Exposito’s corner to seal a 1-0 win at Getafe, a fourth league win for Manolo’s side. That brought them up to 30 points, with talk that Europe’s unexpected push is getting more serious with each passing week.
Why the European challenge is real
When unusual teams are flying high at the end of LaLiga in the first half of the season, there are often a number of underlying metrics that point to their imminent collapse.
Espanyol’s tally of just 10 goals from open play may suggest some sort of blip may be in the offing, but overall, there are reasons to think the European challenge is sustainable.
Surprisingly given their lofty position, Espanyol’s 20 goal return is a significant underperformance of their xG total of 23.9. They rank in the top six of LaLiga in xG (fifth), xG Against (fourth fewest), and xG Difference (fifth).
Their current victory has come without the help of the injured Puado, who is close to returning. They seem to have reasonable depth at most positions, although they could miss out on players like Dmitrovic, Romero, and Cabrera who are some of those players who will face a tough side.
European places were awarded to the top eight teams in LaLiga last quarter. Although that number looks set to drop to six or seven this year (depending on the winner of the Copa del Rey), Espanyol are already in a very strong position to compete for one of those spots.
They are seven points clear of seventh-placed Athletic Club, playing a narrow game. With the likes of Sevilla and Valencia struggling on and off the pitch, and Real Sociedad currently just one point above the relegation zone, there are few candidates who can overhaul Manolo’s side in the race for Europe.
Mark is a freelance football writer based in Madrid, and editor of LaLigaExpert.com. He has been linking LaLiga and European football since 2014.
