UEFA Europa League 2019/20: RCD Espanyol vs Stjarnan – Tactical analysis

Espanyol is the first Spanish team to start their European campaign as they welcomed the Iceland club Stjarnan. They were one of the few big names that began their Europa League journey beside Eintracht Frankfurt, Wolverhampton, and Torino.

After finishing at 7^th in La Liga, Espanyol qualified for the Europa League second qualifying round following Valencia’s Copa del Rey triumph. A vibrant summer witnessed David Gallejo promoted to the first-team managerial spot in place of Rubi. Besides that, Mario Hermoso and Aarón Martín have departed from the club for Atlético and Mainz 05 respectively. While promoting some youngsters such as Adrià Pedrosa, Lluis Lopéz with him, he also bought a few experienced players to Espanyol. Loanee Bernardo Espinosa, 2012 Europa League-finalist Ander Iturraspe and Matías Vargas are the names that arrived at the Cornellà El-Prat.

Stjarnan Gardabaer, the Icelandic Cup champion, secured their spot for this season Europa League by finishing 3^rd in the league. They travelled to Spain being rated as the outsider of this tie and the difference in quality was clearly shown in the match. Two goals from Facundo Ferreyra and Borja Iglesias gave Espanyol a huge advantage before the second leg.

This tactical analysis will analyse the factors that helped Gallejo’s side secured a dominant win at home. Meanwhile, using statistics, we will point out what Stjarnan need to improve in their tactics in order to turn this tie around.

Lineups

Espanyol lined up in a 4-2-2-2 formation with veteran Diego Lopéz in goal. Defenders Lluis Lopéz and Pedrosa made their debut for the first team. Playing alongside them were Naldo (no, not the Naldo you’re thinking of, the other Naldo) and captain Javi Lopéz. Sergi Darder and Victor Sánchez paired up as central midfielders, while Esteban Granero and Óscar Melendo located behind the strikers. Borja Iglesias and former Newcastle player Facundo Ferreyra responsible for providing the goals.

Rúnar Páll Sigmundsson’s side entered the match with a 5-4-1 formation, in contrast to what being shown above as Daniel Laxdal played as one of the centre-backs. In goal was Haraldur Björnsson, while Brynjar Gudjónsson and Martin Rauschenberg were the remaining two that played in the central of their defence. Central midfielders Alex Hauksson and Eyjólfur Hédinsson provided a shield in front of the defence. Meanwhile, Gudmundur Hafsteinsson played as the lone striker upfront.

A conservative first-half from both sides

During the first few minutes, it’s clear to see that Stjarnan’s intention was to defend their own box. By using a 5-4-1 formation with two defensive lines, they created a low-block right in front of the 16-yard box. With numerical superiority, they could dominate the half-spaces and central spaces. Alongside that, Espanyol players would find it hard to make a pass or send a through ball between channels.

The disciplined structure required players to stick to their position and focused on only the ball carrier and his possible passing options. It seems like a disadvantage to them as this limited their press and hindered them from creating goalscoring chances. But due to the fact that Espanyol circulated the ball a lot, they managed to keep the home side from approaching Björnsson’s goal in the first half.