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A historic clash at an iconic venue
Get to know Sporting de Gijón's El Molinón ahead of Saturday's visit to Asturias
Two renowned clubs of Spanish football meet on Saturday, as Real Sporting de Gijón and RCD Espanyol face off in matchday 13 of LaLiga Hypermotion.
Espanyol travel to Gijón on the day of the Club’s 123rd birthday, hoping to celebrate their anniversary with three points. They will play at El Molinón, one of Spain’s oldest and most celebrated stadiums. Let us learn more about the venue before Saturday’s clash!
- El Molinón is the oldest stadium in Spain. Although the date of construction is not known, the first reference to the ground came in the El Comercio newspaper on 20th May 1908.
- Located on the riverbed of the River Piles in Asturias, northern Spain, it currently holds around 30,000 fans, making it the fifth-largest stadium in the second tier.
- Sporting and Espanyol have faced each other 53 times at El Molinón, with 41 of those in the First Division; this will be the fourth meeting of its kind in the second division. The record currently stands at 12 Espanyol wins, 13 draws and 28 defeats against the Asturians.
- Espanyol’s last away win dates back to the 2015/16 season. Then led by Constantin Galca, the Mágico earned a commanding 4-2 win with goals from Burgui, a Gerard Moreno brace and an own goal from Luis Hernández.
- Asturian Joaquín Alonso has played the most games as a Sporting player at El Molinón, with 325 appearances defending the sportinguista shirt between 1976 and 1992.
- Its top scorer is Enrique Castro, better known as 'Quini', with 133 goals. In the blanquiazul corner, Toni and Arteaga have made the most appearances at the ground with five games each.