Carlos Espí’s late strike keeps Real Madrid close after 3-2 win at Elche
Carlos Espí scored an 88th-minute winner as Real Madrid came from behind to beat Elche 3-2 in a La Liga match at the Martínez Valero on Tuesday night.
José Mourinho summoned Espí on the touchline late in the game and handed him a small folded note before the forward entered; Madrid had been 2-0 up inside half an hour but surrendered the lead after goals from Abiel Osorio (71) and Fer Niño (83). Vinícius Júnior, Arda Guler and Aurélien Tchouaméni had all gone off or were largely ineffective as Elche dominated the second half.
Espí, on as a substitute, finished after Jude Bellingham’s run released Kylian Mbappé, who laid the ball off for the 21-year-old to score; the sequence followed Mourinho’s instruction at 11.16pm and by 11.21pm Espí was celebrating in the corner. The striker had previously scored an injury-time winner on the opening weekend and had been on the pitch for four minutes when he secured the victory.
Born in Tavernes, Espí’s family were at the side of the pitch after the match; the article says no one had heard of him this time last year but by the end of the season there was a case to say he had been the single most important player in Spain, Madrid having paid his buyout clause. He scored 11 goals in 25 games to rescue a team from relegation and, the piece notes, is a trained oboe player.
At Madrid Espí has been likened to a traditional No 9, described by Thibaut Courtois as a “beast” for going into battle with Antonio Rüdiger in training, and teammates have taken to calling him Joselu Junior. He has scored twice in 42 minutes this season, delivering four points already, a ratio the article says no one at the club bettered.
The result arrived amid a dramatic round of fixtures across La Liga: Real Sociedad 0-0 Celta (played on 3 September), Rayo 2-1 Espanyol, Alavés 0-1 Valencia, Elche 2-3 Real Madrid, Atlético 4-0 Osasuna, Deportivo 0-1 Sevilla and Barcelona 7-2 Racing. Barcelona’s 7-2 win included two goals from João Cancelo, a goal from Karim Adeyemi and Gabriel Jesus’s first curling goal for the club; Lamine Yamal scored once, had one disallowed, hit the post and missed a penalty, while Raphinha has 11 goals so far this season — a start the article compares only to Lionel Messi and Ronaldo.
Other matchweek notes in the article record that Levante and Athletic did not play because of storm conditions, the referee called playing “reckless,” and the league announced the postponement five minutes after kick-off was due. Rayo’s three matches in exile at Leganés produced two wins and one draw amid thousands of empty seats; Valencia, under new caretaker management, won for the first time and scored for just the second time, Atlético put four past Osasuna, and Sevilla moved to fourth.
The win prevented Real Madrid from facing the prospect of being five points behind Barcelona and comes with a derby against Atlético scheduled for this weekend; Mourinho summed up his relationship with Espí, saying: “Espí’s a funny kid,” Mourinho said; he’s also one he can call on when you need him.