"But the star of the half was Joan Garcia: the Barça goalkeeper made two big saves, one to stop Roberto Fernández shot inside the box, and a second that just does not make any sense whatsoever as he denied Pere Milla's header from close ranger with one of the best reaction saves you will ever see. Joan's distribution and work as a sweeper keeper were also excellent, and his overall performance in the opening 45 minutes in a very hostile atmosphere was about as good as it gets."
"Barcelona kicked off the new year in victorious fashion and have opened up a seven-point gap at the top of the La Liga table thanks to a hard-fought 2-0 win away to Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium in a tense and dramatic Catalan derby on Saturday night."
"Despite Hansi Flick making four substitutions in the first 20 minutes of the second half, Espanyol were by far the better team in the period and could have easily scored at least two goals if not for Joan Garcia, who made at least three world-class stops to keep the home team from taking the lead."
Barcelona secured a 2-0 away win over Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium, opening a seven-point lead atop La Liga and extending their run to nine consecutive league victories. Joan Garcia produced a series of extraordinary saves in goal, keeping Espanyol at bay through the first 80 minutes and again after halftime. The Blaugrana struggled to create clear chances for large periods, with Ferran Torres, Raphinha and Marcus Rashford underwhelming in attack. Two late goals in the final five minutes, both set up by Fermín López, sealed the victory after sustained pressure and multiple substitutions by Hansi Flick.
Read at Barca Blaugranes
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