Pro Sports

Barcelona held 2-2 at last-place Espanyol in Catalan derby

Posted January 04, 2020 6:00 am

By JOSEPH WILSON

Barcelona's Luis Suarez, left, passes the ball during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Espanyol and Barcelona at the RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort) The Associated Press

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) - China forward Wu Lei scored late to give Espanyol a 2-2 draw against 10-man Barcelona in Saturday's Catalan capital derby between the best and worst teams in the Spanish league.

Barcelona's third draw in four rounds left it level on points at the midway point with second-place Real Madrid, which beat Getafe 3-0 hours before. Barcelona kept the league lead on goal difference - and Espanyol remained last - after 19 of 38 games.

The Spanish league said Wu is the first Chinese player to score against Barcelona. The substitute got the equalizer for Espanyol with two minutes remaining after Luis SuÃ¡rez had played a key role in putting Barcelona 2-1 ahead. Espanyol was helped when Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong was sent off for a second yellow card with 15 minutes remaining.

SuÃ¡rez canceled out David LÃ³pez's first-half goal by scoring in the 50th with a precise touch of the tip of his right boot to steer Jordi Alba's lobbed pass between goalkeeper Diego LÃ³pez and his near post.

SuÃ¡rez's assist for substitute Arturo Vidal to give Barcelona the lead nine minutes later was just as impressive. SuÃ¡rez first dribbled around a defender before using the outside of his right boot to flip a pass across the box for Vidal to head home.

Barcelona looked to be heading for a comeback win but Wu broke free down the right side of the area to receive a pass from MatÃas Vargas and drove an angled shot past goalkeeper Neto.

The gutsy performance by Espanyol came in the debut of coach Espanyol coach Abelardo FernÃ¡ndez, a former Barcelona defender, who became the club's third coach of the season last week during the league's winter break.

Espanyol remained winless in 10 home league matches this season, but its players and fans treated the draw as a great victory.

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More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Barcelona's Arturo Vidal, right, celebrates with Barcelona's Gerard Pique after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Espanyol and Barcelona at the RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort) The Associated Press

Barcelona's Lionel Messi, center, runs with ball past Espanyol's Marc Roca, right, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Espanyol and Barcelona at the RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort) The Associated Press

Barcelona's Luis Suarez, center, attempts a shot at goal in front of Espanyol's Bernardo Espinosa during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Espanyol and Barcelona at the RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort) The Associated Press

Barcelona's Arturo Vidal, second right, celebrates with his teammates after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Espanyol and Barcelona at the RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort) The Associated Press

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