Espanyol grab relegation boost in Real Valladolid battle | OneFootball

Espanyol emerged victorious in their relegation battle with Real Valladolid on a tight night in Catalonia.

Both sides headed into the game in the La Liga relegation zone, with a positive result the crucial outcome for both teams, as the stakes grew high.

The hosts made the better of the opening exchanges as Javi Puado gambled on a cross into the box to head the hosts in front on the half-hour mark.

The response from the visitors after the restart was controlled, and Javi Sanchez curled home a free kick, to level up the contest.

With the contest opened up in the closing stages, it was the away side who snatched their chance, as Roberto Fernandez calmly tucked home the winner from close range.

The result was just one aspect of the final outcome with defeat keeping Real Valladolid still in the bottom three, four points from safety, with a win for Espanyol now two points above the drop zone.

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