Espanyol were without La Liga’s second leading sharpshooter in Joselu, as their bid to move away from the relegation zone heightens. Despite having a huge injury list, Sociedad could still select their leading marksman in Alexander Sørloth. Despite the visitors’ lofty perch in La Liga, it was the home side that had the game’s opening chance, as La Real’s Álex Remiro saved well at his near post from a Fernando Calero header.
Sociedad hit back with a fine strike from Mikel Oyarzabal, however Álvaro Fernández was able to produce a quality save at the second attempt. However, the Espanyol stopper was powerless to stop a blistering strike from Takefusa Kubo midway through the first-half as Sociedad took the lead at the RCDE Stadium. Chances came thick and fast following the opening goal as Sørloth and Brais Méndez both went close to doubling La Real’s lead.
Espanyol head coach Diego Martínez brought on loanee Denis Suárez to bolster his attacking options in search of an equaliser. Despite this, just six minutes into the second half, it was La Real who scored next, doubling their lead as Oyarzabal found Sørloth to tap home his ninth La Liga goal of the season. A third goal came soon after when a cross by Kubo saw home captain Leandro Cabrera deflect a header into his own goal, compounding Espanyol’s woes as a small section of home fans vacated their seats. However, those that stayed saw Espanyol grab a goal back through Sergi Darder, who tapped home after Javi Puado’s shot deflected off the bar.
With five minutes to go, a superb run and shot from Brian Oliván gave the home side a lift as all of a sudden La Real started to worry. A second yellow card for Cabrera in stoppage time helped Real Sociedad hold on to collect all three points and claim their sixth win in seven H2H’s between the two sides.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Takefusa Kubo (Real Sociedad)
