Zlatan Ibrahimovic once again ended up as the decisive component, in a match which saw FC Barcelona in full control of the first half. The Swede cannoned the ball into the top left corner, after Xavi was awarded a penalty kick.

Second half, was however going to be an entirely different story, as Espanyol looked renewed in the second half. As the clock ticked, the match grew in intensity, with fouls aplenty. Ultimately FC Barcelona secured three important points, against their city rivals.

RESULT:

FC Barcelona: 1

RCD Espanyol: 0

GOALSCORERS:

FC Barcelona: Ibrahimovic (Penalty) (39′)

RCD Espanyol:

LINEUPS:

FC Barcelona: Valdes, Alves, Pique, Puyol, Maxwell, Toure, Iniesta, Xavi, Pedro, Henry and Ibrahimovic.

RCD Espanyol: Kameni, Chica, Roncaglia, Pareja, Ruiz, Forlin, Baena, Verdu, Garcia, Alonso and Coro.

SUBSTITUTES:

FC Barcelona: Pinto, Marquez, Chygrynskiy, Milito, Keita, Busquets and Bojan.

RCD Espanyol: Cristian, Pillud, Marquez, Callejon, Nakamura, Ciercoles and Sahar.

SUBSTITUTIONS:

FC Barcelona: Pedro -> Keita (61′), Ibrahimovic -> Bojan (75′) and Toure -> Busquets (85′).

RCD Espanyol: Vedru -> Callejon (45′), Baena -> Marquez (45′) and Coro -> Sahar (74′).

CAUTIONS:

FC Barcelona: Ibrahimovic (30′), Pique (83′) and Puyol (86′).

RCD Espanyol: Forlin (18′), Chica (29′) and Baena (37′).