6 stats from Espanyol 1-2 Real Madrid

Real Madrid got their first injury-time winner of the season as they picked up the first three points on the road to Cibeles as Los Blancos beat Espanyol 2-1 at the RCDE Stadium on Saturday night, with six players making their debuts and José Mourinho returning to the dugout after 13 years away.

Here are some of the headline stats and facts from the game.
to score his first goal

Only 10 minutes after coming on to replace Jude Bellingham, Carlos Espí opened his goalscoring account for Real Madrid. Ironically, it was an identical amount of time as the last player to score on his Real Madrid debut: Endrick. The Brazilian added a third in a 3-0 win over Real Valladolid in August 2024, whereas Espí’s touch and finish helped to change the scoreline and seal a crucial victory to start the season on the right foot.

The Portuguese coach has never lost to Espanyol, winning his first four encounters between 2010 and 2012 by adding up 13 goals without conceding any, before two draws, home and away, in 2012/13. This was his first meeting with the Catalans since a 1-1 draw RCDE Stadium in May 2013, when Gonzalo Higuaín scored while wearing the captains armband. It went almost went the same way as his two previous visits, with a third consecutive draw, but Carlos Espí made a pivotal intervention.

It’s not often that any player reaches double digits for shots in a single game, but Kylian Mbappé did it with no reward on Saturday night. His total xG figure may be slightly misleading, as two chances alone account for 1.33, with a point blank header early in the second half going wide and another chance on his right foot shortly before the break also going wide. He still claimed an assist, something he didn’t achieve until mid-September last season, by setting up Espí for the winner.

The last time Real Madrid lost their opening game of the season was 18 years ago, a 2-1 loss to Deportivo A Coruña in Galicia in August 2008. A Ruud van Nistelrooy equaliser early in the second half was cancelled out by Alberto Lopo only five minutes later. Before that loss to Dépor, Real Madrid had most recently lost in 2001, a 1-0 defeat at Mestalla. That ended another lengthy streak, with the previous defeat coming in 1984, when the season started with a Clásico, and was the last time Real Madrid lost their first game of the season at the Bernabéu.

One of the assets that Real Madrid have missed since the departure of Joselu last summer has been aerial strength, but Jude Bellingham showed that he can bring that option to the party when he headed in from Arda Güler’s pinpoint free-kick. It’s Bellingham’s eighth headed goal for Real Madrid, seven coming in league competition, and he has become the only player to have scored with his head in La Liga for any team across each of the last four seasons.

If anyone was concerned that Ibrahima Konaté might have been rusty after a short pre-season, this all-action display calmed their nerves. 89 touches was more than any other player, including more defensive actions than anyone else with nine, and a strong 97% pass completion rate across 75 passes. It was a statement debut from the French international.