Joselu keeps Espanyol alive

After eight games full of frustration, Espanyol found a halo of hope thanks to Joselu’s goal. A goal, from a penalty, that had been previously verified by VAR, which places Luis García’s team just two points from safety, a border determined by Valencia.

A goal that is, in reality, a message of hope in the midst of the gloom, as demonstrated by the almost 30,000 parrots who gathered in his temple in perfect communion with his team. It was celebrated in a big way, with tears from some players just after a dramatic afternoon. Because it was something big for Espanyol to win a game and also leave a clean sheet.

about @DavidSoria18 in the goal of @GetafeCF It’s a show

Javi Puado was already singing a goal, but he ran into the Madrid goalkeeper 🔐 pic.twitter.com/nED2zZAuNP

— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) April 30, 2023

“Don’t give us up for dead, we are there in the fight, there are many games left, we are going to get him out,” shouted Nico Melamed, designated the best of the game on a rainy Barcelona afternoon in which Joselu, accurate in his penalty shot , transformed sadness into a storm of joy.

The protagonist

Perhaps the key moment of the season. And, without a doubt, the most tense. Checked by the VAR, the referee awarded a penalty. Turn for a specialist. Decisive moment for Espanyol, who stood at the feet of Joselu, his nine. The forward managed it with enormous personality, oblivious to the previous noise that existed in the David Soria area. He isolated himself from everything, concentrating on the shot that, perhaps, will change the course for the parakeet world.

Joselu made no mistake with his right hand, which dribbled past the Getafe goalkeeper. He did it with firmness and authority. No gesture of weakness was seen in his shot. David Soria guessed the address. He was going the ball to the right of him. But the power of Joselu’s shot broke any hope for Bordalás, while raising a halo of light for Espanyol. A perfect penalty when he needed it most. Both him, the team and, of course, the blue and white club.

Marking to…

He moved intelligently through the attack front of Espanyol. He played with naturalness and intuition, dangerously reaching the Getafe area. He played well Nico Melamed, but he lacked, yes, aim to find the reward for his good play. He floated Nico behind Joselu and Braithwaite, being undetectable for the defensive structure that José Bordalás had designed in his debut on the azulón bench. His offensive production was intense.

He had up to six shots when there were still 15 minutes left to finish the game. Three shots, including a soft header, ran into the hands of David Soria, the Getafe goalkeeper. That header was easy because he was alone on the edge of the small area. But Nico Melamed erred in direction and, furthermore, in strength, leaving Espanyol exposed to the danger of a tie because it would have been the goal of peace of mind. A goal that did not arrive.

The controversy

There were moments of tension when the game was dying in its first half. The match was stopped because the VAR was checking Braithwaite’s header after an excellent cross from the left wing served by Pedrosa. The trajectory of that aerial ball was interrupted because Aleñá’s right arm was crossed. Immediately, Espanyol protested the penalty because they understood that the ball had touched their hand.

The penalty by Aleñá’s hand in Espanyol-Getafe that Sánchez Martínez pointed out after going to the VAR 👀

What do you think of the action? #LaLigaEnDAZN ⚽ pic.twitter.com/X7yqMWuMln

— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) April 30, 2023

Getafe, on the other hand, defended that it was a totally legal action. Sánchez Martínez, the Murcian referee, was left waiting for the help of technology. And since he was not convinced by what they were saying from Las Rozas, he decided to go to the screen between the two benches at the RCDE Stadium. After a few seconds of analysis, he chose to whistle a penalty. A penalty that brings Espanyol back to life.

The reactions

After the match, Joselu was exhausted. He and all the Espanyol players, including Luis García, his coach. Like thousands of other parrots. “I’m dead, we left everything on the field. It was time to win, it was time to win,” said the striker, who signed his fourteenth goal in the League in 29 games. A spectacular number.

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“These fans deserved a victory like this, which allows us to shake everything up and get back into the game. They are three golden points”, stressed Joselu, assuming that the blue and white team is still in the relegation zone. But now only two points behind Valencia. “It was a victory to get this victory to change the dynamics of a long desert,” said Luis García, the parakeet coach.

Screams of rage that are mixed with tears in the stands

The images of an agonizing battle for salvation. the soul of a @RCDEspanyol that does not give up 💙

PURE FOOTBALL #LaLigaEnDAZN ⚽ pic.twitter.com/nvnzaE76gQ

— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) April 30, 2023

“The players and our fans deserved it. They have shown enormous communion, they have given everything, absolutely everything. If they give it all up, they have a level to be in the First Division,” proclaimed the Espanyol coach, who trusts “blindly in this team and in these people.”