Two penalties give Girona bragging rights over Espanyol in fierce Catalan derby

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Vladyslav Vanat scored penalties in stoppage time of each half as Girona beat Espanyol 2-0 in a fiercely contested Catalan derby in La Liga on Friday.

It was the first time Girona has won three on the trot since November 2024.

The result lifted it into ninth place in the table. Espanyol remained fifth.

Girona had the better of the first half and went ahead on the stroke of halftime when Omar El Hilali was adjudged to have pulled Hugo Rincon in the box.

Espanyol goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic saved Vanat’s initial effort but the referee said he moved from his line before the kick and ordered a retake. Vanat made no mistake a second time, firing a perfect effort to the keeper’s right.

Both sides had chances in a busy second half but Girona took advantage of spaces in the Espanyol defense as the home side pushed for an equalizer.

With seconds remaining, Yaser Asprilla was felled by Ruben Sanchez and Ukrainian striker Vanat scored his second of the night to seal all three points.

“The decision to give the first penalty was very harsh,” veteran Espanyol defender Leandro Cabrera said. “There are a thousand similar situations that never get called back. We lost our patience. In the final minutes there was another penalty decision that killed the game. It’s a pity because the match was pretty tight. A draw would have been a fair result.”

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