Atletico Madrid left it late, but Alex Baena delivered the decisive moment to secure a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Espanyol at RCDE Stadium on Saturday.
The midfielder struck in the 89th minute to extend Atletico’s winning streak to six matches across all competitions and five consecutive victories in LaLiga. His stunning finish finally broke Espanyol’s resistance after goalkeeper Angel Fortuno had produced an impressive display to keep the visitors at bay.
Diego Simeone’s side dominated significant periods of the contest but struggled to turn their pressure into goals. Fortuno proved a formidable obstacle, recording five saves as Espanyol threatened to frustrate Atletico and claim a valuable result on home soil.
The opening half offered little excitement in front of goal, although Jonathan David came close to breaking the deadlock. The forward found space to shoot from a tight angle, but Fortuno reacted well to push his effort wide.
Atletico continued to press after the interval, with Marcos Llorente coming agonisingly close to scoring shortly after the hour mark. His powerful effort was brilliantly tipped onto the top of the crossbar by Fortuno, who remained Espanyol’s standout performer.
The goalkeeper’s workload increased as the visitors intensified their search for a breakthrough. He smothered another attempt from David before producing two important interventions to deny Julian Alvarez.
Alvarez came closest when he attempted a clever trivela finish, only for Fortuno to make a superb fingertip save and turn the ball behind. It appeared the Espanyol goalkeeper had done enough to preserve his side’s clean sheet.
However, Atletico finally found their way through in the closing moments.
With the clock approaching 90 minutes, Alvarez supplied the pass that unlocked Espanyol’s defence, setting up Baena just outside the penalty area. The midfielder made no mistake, unleashing a powerful strike into the top-left corner to snatch all three points for the visitors in the 89th minute.
The late winner rewarded Atletico’s persistence and ensured their impressive run of form continued. Baena’s introduction proved decisive, with the midfielder making his presence felt during a 28-minute cameo that included two chances created and the match-winning goal.
Atletico’s attacking numbers reflected their greater threat throughout the encounter. They registered 19 shots and accumulated 1.34 expected goals (xG), compared with Espanyol’s 10 attempts and 0.53 xG.
The defensive performance was equally important. Atletico restricted Espanyol to no shots on target in the first half and just two across the entire match, giving their forwards the platform to find a decisive breakthrough.
Baena’s contribution also underlined his impressive start to the 2026-27 LaLiga campaign. The midfielder has now been involved in seven league goals for Atletico, recording five goals and two assists.
That return is already two goal contributions better than his entire previous LaLiga season, when he managed two goals and three assists across 27 appearances. He is also just two goals away from matching his personal best of seven league goals, achieved with Villarreal in the 2024-25 campaign.
For Alvarez, the victory brought a measure of relief after he registered his first LaLiga assist of the season. However, the Argentina international is still searching for his first league goal of the 2026-27 campaign.
Ultimately, Atletico’s persistence proved decisive in Barcelona. With Fortuno repeatedly denying their attackers, Baena produced the moment of quality that separated the sides and maintained Simeone’s team’s momentum.
Six consecutive wins have now strengthened Atletico’s run of form, while Baena’s growing influence offers further encouragement as the campaign gathers pace.
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