Espanyol Triumphs Over Villarreal with Cabrera and Fortuño's Heroics
Leandro Cabrera’s header, Ángel Fortuño’s gloves and a caretaker on the touchline. That was the spine of an Espanyol win that made little sense on the stats sheet but spoke loudly on the scoreboard.
At the Estadio de la Cerámica, with B-team coach Sergio García temporarily in charge and a new era waiting in the wings, Espanyol stole a 1-0 victory from a Villarreal side that had almost everything but the finish.
A team in limbo, a result with weight
This was not a routine away win. It arrived three days after Manolo González was dismissed, his 107-game spell in charge ending under the weight of one point from the previous 15 available in LaLiga. The club named Eder Sarabia as the new head coach on 28 October, but a two-match suspension kept him away from the dugout.
So it was García, promoted from the B team for the night, who patrolled the technical area for the opening fixture of the LaLiga round. Behind him, a squad searching for direction. In front of him, a Villarreal side expected to dictate.
They did. On the ball, at least.
Iñigo Pérez’s team dominated possession and territory. Villarreal completed 503 accurate passes to Espanyol’s 263, racked up 14 shots to 5 and posted an expected goals figure of 0.92 to the visitors’ 0.26. The game flowed in one direction for long stretches. The scoreboard refused to follow.
VAR twist, then Cabrera strikes
Espanyol even had to survive the gut punch of seeing a goal chalked off just as they thought they had found a way through.
On 50 minutes, Roberto Fernández looked to have broken the deadlock, only for VAR to drag the moment back. The review showed the forward holding Pau Navarro before finishing. The goal was ruled out, the celebrations cut short, and Fernández, who already has six LaLiga goals this season, was left to swallow the decision.
Ten minutes later, the mood flipped again.
Bryan Zaragoza found space and delivered, Cabrera attacked the moment and made it count. The defender’s 60th-minute strike gave Espanyol a lead that felt almost defiant given the pattern of the match. From then on, it became a different type of contest: Villarreal probing, Espanyol digging in.
Fortuño’s night
If Cabrera provided the breakthrough, Fortuño supplied the resistance.
The Espanyol goalkeeper repeatedly frustrated Villarreal as wave after wave of attacks came his way. He commanded his area, handled the volume, and shut the door when the hosts seemed certain to force it open. By the end, his performance earned the highest individual rating of the match at 8.31, a number that only underlines what was obvious to anyone watching: this was his game.
Villarreal’s problems had started early. Gerard Moreno, their attacking reference point, limped off with a muscle injury in the 17th minute and Nicolas Pépé came on in his place. Foyth and Diatta were already missing after being ruled out late. Pérez’s side still controlled the ball, still moved Espanyol around, but lacked the final clarity and cutting edge.
They finished with nothing to show for their territorial dominance.
Edge without malice
For all the tension, the contest never tipped into chaos. It was competitive, edgy at times, but not dirty. Each team collected three yellow cards, and there were no red cards. It felt like a game in which both sides understood the stakes but kept just enough control.
Espanyol, once ahead, refused to overplay the occasion. They dropped, they suffered, and they trusted their goalkeeper. Villarreal kept coming, kept circulating the ball, and kept finding Fortuño in the way.
New era, hard-earned platform
The table reflects the fine margins. Villarreal, beaten at home despite dictating the play, sit 10th on 12 points. Espanyol, clinging to a much-needed win in a week of upheaval, move to 12th with 11 points from their opening games.
Sarabia now steps properly into the picture. The new coach, joined on his staff by former Espanyol centre-back Álvaro González – who wore the shirt between 2014 and 2017 before moving to Olympique de Marseille – will finally take charge from the touchline once his suspension ends.
Before that, Villarreal must quickly reset. Paris Saint-Germain arrive at La Cerámica on Tuesday 3 November in the Champions League, a test far less forgiving than domestic frustration.
Espanyol, buoyed by a victory that felt as much psychological as tactical, welcome Deportivo La Coruña on Saturday 7 November. With the turbulence on the bench easing and a statement away win in their pocket, the question now is simple: was this a one-night stand with resilience, or the first sign of a team ready to fight its way back up the table?
