Espanyol vs Elche

Elche pulled off a stunning 3-1 win at Espanyol despite playing almost the entire match with ten men. Federico Redondo was sent off after just six minutes for a professional foul on Bryan Zaragoza, yet Elche still walked away with all three points. Fer Niño made the man disadvantage irrelevant, scoring twice in three minutes (26', 29') to put Elche 2-0 up before half-time. Espanyol pulled one back when Víctor Chust turned into his own net in the 72nd minute, but Germán Valera restored the cushion six minutes later, finishing off a swift break to make it 1-3. It's Elche's first win of the season, a huge lift after a rough start near the bottom of the table. For Espanyol, it's a damaging setback - controlling possession with a spare man for 84 minutes yet still losing at home raises serious questions about the team's cutting edge and game management.