“Manolo Gonzalo’s team lost to the opponent throughout the game, but managed to turn the tide of the meeting in their favor.”, — write: football.ua
Manolo Gonzalo’s team lost to the opponent throughout the game, but managed to turn the tide of the meeting in their favor.
The Basques were the first to take the lead: in the 38th minute, Berenger took advantage of the space near the penalty area and scored accurately, giving Athletic Bilbao the lead. However, even before the break, the Catalans regained their balance — Romero aptly ended the visitors’ attack in the 44th minute.
The beginning of the second half was key. A defensive error by the hosts allowed Espanyol to quickly set up a scoring attack, which Per Milla finished off to make it 2-1 in the 52nd minute. After that, the team of Manolo González competently played for the score, defending reliably and responding dangerously with counterattacks.
Athletic Bilbao had the initiative in the final part of the match and came close to a draw several times, but Dmytrovych was confident in the Espanyol goal, preventing the hosts from saving the game.
Goals: Berenger, 38 – Romero, 44, Miglia, 52
Athletic Bilbao: Simon – Gorosabel (Gomez, 76), Paredes, Lecouet, Boyro (Areso, 76) – Ruiz de Galarreta (Rego, 57), Haureguisar – Berenger, Sunset, Williams (Navarro, 79) (Guruseta, 57) – Williams (Navarro, 79) (Guruseta, 57)
Espanyol: Dmitrovich — El Hilali, Calero, Cabrera, Romero (Ridel, 84) — Losano (Garcia, 72), Gonzalez, Esposito (Salinas, 83) — Dolan (Sanchez, 83), Fernandez, Milla (Carreras, 57)
Warnings: de Galarreta, Williams, Gorosabel, Rego – Gonzalez, Riedel