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Milla and Braithwaite fire RCD Espanyol to win over Racing Santander

The team's first home game ends in a 2-0 victory

Goals from Pere Milla and Martin Braithwaite either side of halftime earned RCD Espanyol a first win of the season against Racing Santander, in a game held behind closed doors at the Stage Front Stadium.

The absence of fans, fulfilling the one-match sanction applied to the stadium due to the incidents last season, were a throwback to the pandemic era with an eery silence amidst the intense Barcelona heat.

RCD Espanyol were able to get out in front very quickly, thanks to a header from debutant Pere Milla. The attacker had joined the club earlier in the week from Elche CF, and marked his first appearance with an important goal.

Los Pericos had numerous opportunities to extend their advantage, including one from Braithwaite which Ezkieta saved.

The Cantabrians regrouped and approached Fernando Pacheco's goal with some danger, but Espanyol returned fire with new chances for Nico Melamed and Braithwaite. Pacheco made another good stop just before the break.

Luis García made a triple substitution to switch things up in the second half. Calero had a first opportunity and Jofre could have killed the game off early, but Ezkieta was quick and agile in his reaction. A few minutes later, however, he couldn't stop Braithwaite's great move to send the ball into the back of the net.

The 2-0 advantage was insurmountable for Racing, no matter how hard they tried to attack impulsively in the last minutes, and RCD Espanyol got their first win of the campaign.