Racing Santander 2-1 Espanyol: hosts turn it round after the hour
AI-written review based on match data · How we make it
Key numbers
- xG 2.67 v 0.62: Racing created the better chances
- 9 shots on target to 1; Fortuño made 7 saves
- 23 shots and 9 corners, both season highs
A goal down, Racing answered twice
The first half finished goalless, and it was Espanyol who broke the deadlock. Edu Expósito scored in the 62nd minute from Javier Hernandez's assist. Racing Santander answered twice in quick succession, Jeanuël Belocian equalising in the 69th minute before Yassir Zabiri put the hosts in front in the 84th.
Racing's attacking output was a season high
Racing Santander's xG of 2.67 was the highest in their nine matches this season, and their 23 shots and corner count also reached season highs. That suggests a clear step up on their usual level of pressure. The season-high output finally told after the hour, once Espanyol had gone ahead.
Espanyol seldom tested the goalkeeper
Espanyol managed a single shot on target, their season low, and Racing's xG against of 0.62 was the lowest they have conceded this season. Ángel Fortuño made seven saves, which kept the visitors in the contest until the 84th minute. A little went a long way for Espanyol, but not for long enough.
Zabiri's late winner changed the most
Zabiri's winner was worth +1.5 FN xPts to Racing Santander, while Espanyol's FN xPts fell by 0.9. Taken together, it was the largest change of the match, bigger even than Belocian's equaliser. Set up by Álvaro Mantilla, it was Zabiri's eighth league goal of the season.
FN MOM
Highest FN Score · our own pick by a published formula, not the official Player of the Match
Sergio Canales 8.6Dominant
He led all players with four key passes and assisted Belocian's equaliser.
Racing's FN MOM did his most valuable work in attack, yet he also contributed off the ball, winning eight of 14 duels and completing three of six dribbles. He won three fouls as well. That output fed directly into the 69th-minute equaliser, which answered the goal conceded in the 62nd minute.
Game state
0-11-12-1
Racing Santander ahead 6 min · level 77 min · Espanyol ahead 7 min
FN xPts — what each moment was worth
How much each moment changed that team's expected points (win 3, draw 1). A goal's value is credited 70% to the scorer and 30% to the assist. The value next to a team code is what the same moment did to the other side's expected points; the decisive moment is the one with the largest combined change for both teams.
62'
Edu Expósito
Goal · scorer +0.7 · assist Javier Hernandez +0.3 · RAC −0.8
+1.0
69'
Jeanuël Belocian
Goal · scorer +0.6 · assist Sergio Canales +0.3 · ESP −1.1
+0.9
84'
Yassir Zabiri
Goal · scorer +1.0 · assist Álvaro Mantilla +0.5 · ESP −0.9
+1.5
Racing Santander
Expected (last two seasons) 1.4Own moments +2.4Opponent moments −0.8Time effect 0.0→ League points won 3
Espanyol
Expected (last two seasons) 1.3Own moments +1.0Opponent moments −2.0Time effect −0.3→ League points won 0
Expected points don't add up to a fixed total (a draw is 1 + 1), so an opponent's moment isn't simply the mirror of your loss. "Time effect" is the change as the clock runs down on a lead or a chase, and isn't credited to any player.
How FN Score and FN xPts work →
Match stats
Racing SantanderEspanyol
2.67Expected goals (xG)0.62
Compared with usual
Racing Santander
9 matches this season, all competitions baseline
| This match | Avg | |
|---|
| Goals | 2 | 1.4 | |
| Conceded | 1 | 2.8 | |
| xG | 2.67 | 1.3 | high |
| xG against | 0.62 | 2.3 | low |
| Shots | 23 | 11.2 | high |
| On target | 9 | 4.4 | |
| Shots faced | 11 | 16.3 | |
| xG per shot | 0.12 | 0.14 | |
| Possession | 55% | 49.6% | |
| Passes | 473 | 437.2 | |
| Corners | 9 | 4.7 | high |
| Fouls | 10 | 13.8 | |
Espanyol
9 matches this season, all competitions baseline
| This match | Avg | |
|---|
| Goals | 1 | 1.2 | |
| Conceded | 2 | 1.3 | |
| xG | 0.62 | 1.1 | |
| xG against | 2.67 | 1.3 | |
| Shots | 11 | 12.7 | |
| On target | 1 | 3.7 | low |
| Shots faced | 23 | 13.1 | high |
| xG per shot | 0.06 | 0.11 | |
| Possession | 45% | 46.3% | |
| Passes | 378 | 375.9 | |
| Corners | 4 | 2.3 | |
| Fouls | 17 | 16.1 | |
Timeline
- 8'
Yellow
Iñigo Vicente
- 17'
Yellow
Pol Lozano
- 39'
VAR
Álex Calatrava
- 43'
Yellow
José Manuel González Álvarez (coaching staff)
- 62'
Goal
Edu Expósito league goal #1 assist Javier Hernandez
- 67'
Yellow
Pablo Ramón
- 67'
Sub
Matteo Prati → Iker Luque
- 67'
Sub
Andrés Martín → Pablo García
- 69'
Goal
Jeanuël Belocian league goal #1 assist Sergio Canales
- 70'
Yellow
Urko González
- 76'
Sub
Javier Hernandez → Tyrhys Dolan
- 76'
Sub
Bryan Zaragoza → Javi Puado
- 82'
Sub
Sergio Canales → André Almeida
- 82'
Sub
Pablo Ramón → Pedro Felipe
- 84'
Goal
Yassir Zabiri league goal #8 assist Álvaro Mantilla
- 85'
Sub
Pol Lozano → Urko González
- 85'
Sub
Álex Calatrava → Marcos Fernández
- 88'
Sub
Iñigo Vicente → Maguette Gueye
- 89'
Yellow
Javi Puado
- 90'
Yellow
Edu Expósito
- 90+5'
Sub
Vanja Drkušić → Unai Núñez
- 90+7'
Yellow
Jorge Salinas
Category leaders
- Key passesSergio Canales4
- Duels wonPablo Ramón8/11
- DribblesSergio Canales3/6
- Defensive actionsÁlex Calatrava8
- ShotsJorge Salinas4 (on target 1)
- Fouls wonBryan Zaragoza4
#La Liga#Racing Santander#Espanyol#Sergio Canales#Yassir Zabiri#Edu Expósito
This review was written by AI from match data (API-Football). FN Score and FN xPts are calculated by Fulltime Note using a published formula.