Vinicius Jr Steals the Show as Real Madrid Crush Barcelona's Title Party Against Espanyol

A double from Vinicius Junior guided Real Madrid to a 2–0 win over a dismal Espanyol side on Sunday night, keeping the Spanish club mathematically in contention for the La Liga crown for at least one more week.

Álvaro Arbeloa's squad made the journey to Catalonia hoping to return to form following a late collapse against Real Betis in their previous outing. Yet it was Espanyol, winless throughout 2026, who showed more hunger during the opening 45 minutes.

Los Blancos flipped the script after the break, with Vinicius Jr breaking the deadlock in the 55th minute before doubling the advantage just 11 minutes later, finishing off a sublime backheel assist from Jude Bellingham.

The three points were enough to prevent Barcelona from clinching the La Liga title this weekend, though Real Madrid will require a victory in El Clásico next Sunday to delay the inevitable once more.

One Thing We Can't Ignore

While Kylian Mbappé took an unplanned break in Italy, Brahim Díaz stepped in alongside Vinicius Jr up front against Espanyol. It became apparent quite quickly after kickoff that Real Madrid were once again sorely lacking a true striker.

Vinicius Jr and Brahim made runs along both wings, as did Trent Alexander-Arnold, yet whenever they looked to deliver a cross or combine with a teammate in dark blue, there was nobody to connect with. This issue has cropped up repeatedly throughout the season—even with Mbappé on the field—and has become almost predictable at this stage.

What makes the situation even more frustrating is Arbeloa's persistent reluctance to hand Gonzalo García a starting berth. The natural No. 9 provides Los Blancos with a presence in the penalty area—someone to attack dangerous deliveries or at least make threatening runs. Yet he was once again left out of the starting lineup.

Arbeloa eventually saw reason in the 53rd minute and introduced Gonzalo—and just two minutes later he set up Vinicius Jr's opener. At last, the Brazilian had a supporting player to exchange a simple one-two with and get Real Madrid on the board.

Certainly, there are deeper structural problems within this Real Madrid squad that would have hindered their trophy ambitions regardless, but far too often this season the most straightforward and obvious fixes have been overlooked by both former manager Xabi Alonso and Arbeloa.

Real Madrid Player Ratings vs. Espanyol (4-2-3-1)

*Ratings Provided by FotMob*

GK: Andriy Lunin—8.2: Can finally exhale after recording his first clean sheet of the season... and he needed just three saves to achieve it.

RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold—7.4: Would have every right to grumble about his teammates failing to convert his pinpoint deliveries. Nevertheless, his influence was felt throughout the match.

CB: Antonio Rüdiger—6.7: Doing all the right things to earn himself a contract extension. An immovable presence at the back.

CB: Dean Huijsen—7.3: Helped restrict Roberto Fernández to zero shots on target. Appears to have finally hit his stride defensively, which bodes well for the future.

LB: Ferland Mendy—6.2: Picked up yet another injury that forced him from the field in the 14th minute.

DM: Thiago Pitarch—7.1: Covered enormous ground and was willing to do whatever it took to help his team keep or regain possession. Composed on the ball as well.

DM: Aurélien Tchouaméni—8.0: An absolute force of nature. Executed key interceptions with ease and won the ball back in dangerous zones with composure. His only shortcoming was some wayward passing.

RW: Federico Valverde—7.3: Not among his standout displays, but credit is due for his leadership qualities. His rousing halftime team talk clearly had the desired effect on his teammates.

AM: Jude Bellingham—8.2: So effective with the ball that he spent much of the evening being hacked down by Espanyol players. Ultimately rewarded for his elegant play with a stunning backheel assist to tee up Vinicius Jr's second goal.

LW: Vinicius Junior—9.2: Denied by the post early on but more than compensated in the second half. Scored twice to seal all three points, with his brilliant first-time finish on the second goal the undisputed highlight.

ST: Brahim Díaz—6.5: Offered little beyond one half-chance. Completely out of sync with Vinicius Jr.

SUB: Fran García (14' for Mendy)—7.2: Was caught chasing Rubén Sánchez on occasion, but otherwise acquitted himself well.

SUB: Gonzalo García (53' for Díaz)—6.8: Made an immediate impression. Provided the assist for the opener and injected some much-needed dynamism into Real Madrid's attack.

SUB: Franco Mastantuono (53' for Pitarch)—6.9: Showed flashes of quality. Had a promising opportunity saved in the 79th minute.

SUB: Eduardo Camavinga (84' for Tchouaméni)—N/A

SUB: César Palacios (84' for Vinicius Jr)—N/A

Subs not used: Fran González (GK), Sergio Mestre (GK), Álvaro Carreras, David Alaba, David Jiménez, Raúl Asencio.

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