Espanyol 0-1 Atlético: Baena’s late strike keeps the pressure on Barcelona

Atlético Madrid beat Espanyol 1-0 at the RCDE Stadium, substitute Alex Baena striking in the 89th minute to turn a match the visitors had controlled for long spells without ever looking like winning comfortably. The goal keeps Atlético second on 22 points, two behind Barcelona with the leaders having played a game fewer, while Espanyol stay 13th on 8, undone at the death for the second home game running.

How the match unfolded

For 88 minutes this was a match of Atlético’s possession and Espanyol’s resistance. The visitors held 71 percent of the ball, completed 598 passes at 89 percent and took 19 shots to the home side’s 10, yet the expected goals read only 1.35 to 0.42 — a game of control without clear sight of goal. Espanyol’s two shots on target were their entire attacking output, absorbed without alarm.

The winner, when it came, came from the two most expensive instincts on the pitch. Julián Álvarez, himself a second-half entrant, created the opening and Alex Baena finished it in the 89th minute, seconds after the home end had begun to believe a point was banked. For a side that has built its season on late goals, it was the most familiar script of all.

Espanyol’s discipline deserved more. They committed five fouls’ worth of yellow cards — five bookings to Atlético’s two — in a defensive performance that conceded almost nothing for an hour and held firm until the final minute. Their substitutions tracked Atlético’s pushes; the plan survived every one of them except the last.

What the result means

The table now shows Atlético’s season in its cleanest form: nine rounds, seven wins, five consecutive victories, and a gap to Barcelona that their own fixture list gives them a chance to close. The football has rarely been expansive; the results have rarely needed to be.

For Espanyol, the defeat stings because of when it arrived, but 13th place after nine rounds is a healthy return for a side expected to struggle. The next home fixture now carries extra weight — points thrown away in the 89th minute are the most expensive kind in a relegation-adjacent season.

Match data and statistics from the OneLightScore platform. Cover image: Atlético Madrid club crest, OneLightScore platform library. Report by Núria Salvat for OneLightScore.