With a team full of youngsters due to the absences, Barça B managed to beat Espanyol B in the derby of Barcelona’s subsidiaries with a great goal by Gerard Fernández “Peque”. Collado, who assisted the goal, again proved that he is more than ready to be in the first team and have minutes under Ronald Koeman’s management.
Watching a young talent debut in a starting lineup is always great news, even more if the one who does it is one of the greatest promises of the youth teams. Pablo Páez “Gavi” started as an interior in Barça B, with Álex Collado and Nico González, a midfield with massive talent. “Gavi” will hope to follow the footsteps of Nico, who during the month of January already saw himself officially become a player of the “B” team.
Espanyol B, on their side, planned a very aggressive match, with very high pressure and denying the participation of the “blaugrana” midfield. During the first half, the “pericos” managed to match the game by this sacrifice, but talent always prevails. Collado repeatedly left Gustavo Maia and Peque in front of the rival goal, but neither of those chances succeeded to change the score.
Unfortunately, the main event in the first half was a new injury for Barça B. The curse on the right side is more real than ever, as Álvaro Sanz had to leave the pitch after a bad fall in which he hurt his foot. Ramos Mingo came in and Roger Riera covered his place as a right-back, and the Argentinian regained sensations in terms of leadership and pace of competition.
In the second half, the physical effort of the locals was downhill, and talent finally became differential. “Gavi” put the ball into space for Collado, who crossed the ball perfectly for “Peque” to finish and score 0-1. The two Juvenil A players on the field became decisive in the win.
The “B” also suffered and defended against the last push of Espanyol B, but was still superior with the ball and even had a clear occasion in the boots of Angel Alarcón, another young talent who had minutes and took too long to make the definitive pass to Zeballos, what would have been key to end the match in the 89th minute.
Only two remaining matches for the end of the regular season, and Barça B is tied with Nàstic de Tarragona at the top of the standings. Unless something really unexpected happens, Garcia Pimienta’s boys will be in the final phase for the long-awaited First RFEF promotion.
