Real Madrid required a dramatic late winner from substitute Carlos Espí to secure a 2-1 victory over Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium, opening their La Liga campaign under manager José Mourinho with a hard-fought win.
Los Blancos made a ideal start to the match when Arda Güler delivered a precise set-piece into the penalty area, allowing Jude Bellingham to rise highest and head home in the 9th minute.
However, the early lead failed to grant the visitors control, as Álex Calatrava (“Kala”) capitalized on a setup from Javi Hernández to fire a powerful left-footed strike past the goalkeeper, restoring parity for Espanyol in the 30th minute.
The teams headed into the break level at 1-1, and the second half turned into a grueling tactical battle for Mourinho’s side. Espanyol maintained a compact defensive unit, while goalkeeper Marko Dmitrović pulled off key saves to deny Real Madrid’s attack.
Neither Kylian Mbappé nor Vinícius Júnior managed to break the deadlock despite playing the full 90 minutes, leaving Real Madrid on the brink of dropping points in their official debut of the season—following the postponement of their opening fixture against Real Sociedad.
The match saw all six of Real Madrid’s summer signings make their official debuts: Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konaté, and Bernardo Silva started the match, while Marc Cucurella and Yan Diomande entered in the 64th minute, followed by Carlos Espí in the 80th minute.
Just ten minutes after coming on to replace Bellingham, Espí made the decisive impact by scoring the winner in the 90th minute on his competitive debut, securing three valuable points for Mourinho.
Espí’s game-changing goal capped a swift transfer story: Real Madrid intercepted his prospective move to Brighton in a rapid single-day operation, triggering his €25 million release clause at Levante and signing him on a contract through 2031.
Real Madrid returns to action on Wednesday, August 26, hosting Real Sociedad at the Santiago Bernabéu (9:00 PM local Spanish time) in their rescheduled Matchday 1 fixture.
