Real Madrid kept their slim La Liga title hopes alive with a professional 2-0 victory over Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium, delaying Barcelona’s potential championship celebrations.
The hosts actually began brighter, carving out the clearer openings in the early stages.
Roberto Fernández and Rubén Sánchez both came close to breaking the deadlock, while Madrid initially struggled to impose control or find fluency in possession.
Gradually, Carlo Ancelotti’s side settled into the contest, with Vinícius Júnior becoming their main attacking threat.
The Brazilian hit the post midway through the first half and repeatedly caused problems with his pace and direct running against the Espanyol back line.
A key moment arrived when Omar El Hilali was initially shown a red card for a challenge on Vinícius, only for the decision to be overturned to a yellow after a VAR review.
Even so, Espanyol regrouped well and managed to hold Madrid level going into the break.
The breakthrough came shortly after the restart. On 55 minutes, Vinícius drove inside from the left, linked up neatly with substitute Gonzalo García, and finished clinically into the bottom corner to put Madrid ahead.
Espanyol still carried a threat in spells, but their final execution let them down, while Madrid looked increasingly dangerous whenever they broke forward.
The second goal arrived in the 66th minute and effectively ended the contest. A clever back-heel from Jude Bellingham released Vinícius in the box, and he finished emphatically into the top corner to complete his brace.
From there, Madrid controlled proceedings comfortably. Espanyol pushed forward in search of a response but rarely tested Andriy Lunin in the closing stages.
Late chances fell to Bellingham and promising youngster Franco Mastantuono, but Espanyol goalkeeper Marko Dmitrović ensured the defeat stayed at two goals with a couple of solid saves.
