Vinicius Junior Double Delays Barca in Espanyol Vs Real Madrid Standings

Vinicius Junior scored twice after the break as Real Madrid beat Espanyol 2-0, a result that kept espanyol vs real madrid standings from flipping Barcelona's title chance into a celebration. The win left Real Madrid 11 points behind the leaders with 12 games left.

Vinicius Junior Breaks It Open

Both goals came after halftime, and that was enough to settle it. Real Madrid controlled the decisive phase and turned one away match into a result that held Barcelona back from wrapping up the league immediately.

Marko Dmitrovic denied Real Madrid a third goal with a series of saves, so the margin stayed at two. Five minutes were added at the end of the second half, but Espanyol could not use that stretch to change the scoreline.

Barcelona Keep The Edge

The standings gap had been 14 points before the match coverage noted it, and Real Madrid's win trimmed that to 11. Barcelona will win the title if Real fail to win, and anything less than a Real Madrid victory in El Clasico next week will hand Barcelona back-to-back titles.

That leaves the race pointed straight at next week's meeting between the rivals. Real Madrid still have 12 games left in La Liga, but this result means the title cannot be settled by Espanyol's home match and now turns on what happens when Barcelona and Real Madrid meet again.

Urko Gonzalez de Zarate also picked up a yellow card for pulling on the shirt of Cesar Palacios, a small flashpoint in a match decided by Vinicius Jr's finishing and Dmitrovic's saves. For Real, the job is now simple: win El Clasico or watch Barcelona close it out.