Espanyol cannot be called a "big" Spanish team. We usually saw her finish somewhere in the middle of the standings, while her appearances in European competitions were sparse.
And yet, the Catalans, along with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and Valencia, were the only teams to have played in the Primera Division continuously throughout the 21st century.
This stopped after the 1-0 defeat by Barça. Espanyol remained at -11 from salvation having three more matches ahead of them, as a result of which they were relegated mathematically for the first time since 1993. Then, they managed to return immediately to the salons, in which they were uninterrupted from 1994 until this year.
For 26 seasons, the poor relative of the "blaugrana" was a permanent resident of Primera. Her best placement was in 2005, when she won 5th place, while she also won two Spanish Cups (2000 & 2006). In 2007, she took a breather from her first European title, but Ernesto Valverde's team lost to Sevilla in the UEFA Cup final. In the 2018/19 season, he managed to return to Europe, finishing 7th. He reached the "32" of this year's Europa League, where he was eliminated by the Wolves, but in the meantime he was facing great difficulties in the championship. Eventually, the fatality came with the demotion, with the major shareholder and president, Chen Janseng, publicly apologizing and promising the club's fans that hard work would fall to get the team back to where it once belonged.
How can Espanyol not get this far, though, when a cart of coaches has changed in a year? Ruby left for Betis, he was replaced by David Gayego and then came Pablo Machin. Abelardo followed and recently Roufete sat on the bench. This way no work is done, serious at least…
PS: Two more to follow downhill, with Leganes and Mallorca being the most dominant…
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