It would take a serious meltdown for Espanyol to miss out on qualifying for European football this term. Looking down the table, they have a 10-point cushion from seventh-placed Celta Vigo.<\/p>\n
But they have not beaten Barcelona in La Liga since 2009.<\/p>\n
Despite Barca\u2019s recent dominance and established superiority in terms of history, fanbase and budget, the rivalry between the clubs is fierce. It will be especially so on Saturday. This is going to be the Joan Garcia derby.<\/p>\n
The goalkeeper, 24, will return to the club he joined as a 15-year-old; the club he left last summer to join Barca<\/a> who paid his \u20ac25million (\u00a321.7m; $29.3m) release clause and who see him as their No 1 for years to come. He has been outstanding so far this season, and nobody at Barca has any regrets over the move. The switch did, however, bring costs for Garcia.<\/p>\n Many Espanyol fans felt betrayed by Garcia\u2019s decision to leave. Tensions are so high that the club has felt compelled to take special measures for this weekend\u2019s match.<\/p>\n \n Espanyol celebrate with home fans after beating Rayo Vallecano in December (Javier Borrego\/Europa Press via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Espanyol have installed safety nets behind both goals to try and stop fans throwing objects at him during the game. In recent weeks, local media reports carried word that several local Espanyol supporter groups were discussing the idea of pelting him with rats. At a central Barcelona food market over a month ago, one of the stall owners told me fans had been asking around for advice on how to get hold of them.<\/p>\n Away fans are banned. Espanyol said earlier this week that any supporters wearing \u201cshirts, scarves, hats, flags, or any other insignia of the away team will not be allowed entry,\u201d adding: \u201cThis rule applies to all areas of the stadium.\u201d<\/p>\n There will be extra security checks, and a longer-than-usual list of prohibited items includes \u201cmotorbike helmets, suitcases, laptops and any object that could be thrown onto the pitch\u201d.<\/p>\n Back in September 2024, a referee was struck by a lighter at Espanyol\u2019s ground during a match with Villarreal. The club was punished with a suspended stadium closure which would come into effect if another such incident takes place.<\/p>\n \n Garcia as an Espanyol player in April 2021 (Joan Valls\/Urbanandsport\/NurPhoto via Getty Images)<\/p>\n In June 2023, Espanyol had their stadium shut down for two games because of a big pitch invasion after a 4-2 defeat by Barcelona the month before. In that game, Xavi\u2019s side clinched La Liga\u2019s title and started celebrating on the pitch, until local fans jumped in.<\/p>\n \u201cFans are entitled to boo or whistle whoever they want, but it has to be done from a perspective in which our own club can\u2019t be harmed by that,\u201d said club captain Leandro Cabrera in an interview with TV3 this week.<\/p>\n \u201cWith Joan\u2019s departure, Espanyol got an amount of money that has been very useful to secure important signings and improve the squad, so whatever happens from now on it can\u2019t have a bad impact on our club.\u201d<\/p>\n Garcia is far from the first Espanyol player to leave for Barcelona. In fact, he is the 38th footballer to make the move \u2014 but he was the first to do it in 31 years. The last player to switch before him was Russian striker Igor Korneyev, who joined Johan Cruyff\u2019s Barca back in 1994.<\/p>\n The fact that Garcia was one of their own, though \u2014 an academy graduate \u2014 contributes to the animosity. He joined at 15 from CF Damm, a local youth club with a strong history of producing talent. He was promoted to Espanyol\u2019s reserve team in 2019, aged 18, and two years later made his senior professional debut \u2014 although it wasn\u2019t until the 2023-24 season when he fully established himself in goal.<\/p>\n That season, his performances helped propel Espanyol to promotion up to the Spanish top flight. Last term, in a very limited Espanyol side deeply impacted by financial constraints and tensions over the previous ownership, Garcia was their player of the year. Countless heroic displays were crucial to their survival \u2014 sealed on the final day with a 2-0 win over Las Palmas.<\/p>\n After that victory, with rumours and reports already suggesting he was being tracked by big European clubs interested in paying his release clause, Garcia posted a picture on his Instagram profile celebrating the feat and kissing Espanyol\u2019s badge.<\/p>\n Joan Garcia Pons. Wall. \ud83e\uddf1#LaLigaHighlights<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/wMkXhPkDni<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Espanyol](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2250577182-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Garcia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-1232509820-scaled.jpg\")
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