Espanyol and Barça arrive on a roll for the derby of matchday 18 of LaLiga

RCD Espanyol and FC Barcelona face each other this Saturday, January 2nd, at Cornellà-El Prat for matchday 18 of LaLiga EA Sports. For the first time in recent years, both teams arrive at the Catalan derby amidst a winning streak and occupying the top spots in the standings with the first half of the tournament almost complete.

Barça comes from winning their last eight matches in the tournament and has already secured the winter championship with 46 points, 4 more than Real Madrid. The 'pericos', for their part, also added the last 15 points available in the league, with five consecutive wins that allowed Manolo González's team to maintain fifth place in the standings with 33 units.

In LaLiga, Espanyol has not lost since November 8 against Villarreal (0-2), precisely the last opponent that the 'culés' defeated by the same score. In Cornellà, the 'blanquiazul' team has 6 wins, 1 draw, and a couple of losses so far, while Hansi Flick's team also won 6 of their 9 away games, with a single draw against Rayo and defeats against Sevilla and Real Madrid.

Espanyol seeks to win its first league derby in Cornellà

In the league, the Blaugrana's dominance has been notable since the opening of Cornellà-El Prat in the 2009/10 season. Barcelona never lost in their previous 15 visits to the Perico's ground in the league, with **a record of 9 wins and 6 draws** in which they scored 31 goals and conceded only 9

Espanyol's last home win in a league derby dates back to January 14, 2007, on matchday 18 of LaLiga 06/07. The 'blanquiazules', managed by Ernesto Valverde, won at Montjuïc with goals from Luis García, Raúl Tamudo, and Francisco Rufete (3-1).

Javier Saviola scored the only Barça goal in a season where the Perico team prevented the azulgrana team from winning a third consecutive title by taking 4 out of 6 points in their direct encounters. Real Madrid won the title by having the advantage in direct encounters.

Barça also managed to clinch the title on their last two visits to Cornellà, thanks to victories (2-4 and 0-2) in 2023 and 2025 that sealed the championship for the teams led by Xavi Hernández and Hansi Flick, respectively. The last time the Blaugrana did not win an away derby was in 21/22 (0-0).

Flick's Barça Aims to Match Best League Streak

A Barça victory on Saturday, moreover, will equal Barcelona's best winning streak since Hansi Flick took the helm. The German coach won his first 7 matches in 24/25 and, in the second half of the season, won all points between matchday 20 and 29 to head towards the title.

In 25/26, the team consecutively defeated Elche (3-1), Celta (2-4), Athletic (4-0), Alavés (3-1), Atlético (3-1), Betis (3-5), Osasuna (2-0), and Villarreal (0-2) to secure the winter championship. The eight victories were achieved with a minimum two-goal advantage, matching the streak achieved in 2017 with Luis Enrique (5) and Ernesto Valverde (3) on the bench.

The Blaugranas also maintain a streak of 39 consecutive league matchdays scoring at least 1 goal. The last time Barça failed to score was on December 15, 2024, against Leganés (0-1). In 2025, the Catalans played 60 matches in all competitions, with only one defeat (against Chelsea, 3-0) without managing to score.