Barcelona v Espanyol: Is it time for the Pericos to shine in the derby?

 

Espanyol fans call themselves the "wonderful minority". In a football-obsessed city such as Barcelona it can be hard to spot the club's blue and white jerseys amid a sea of blaugrana.

For almost 80 years Pericos fans have had to accept finishing below Barcelona and, while they can stomach living next door to a footballing "monster", the club's last visit to the Nou Camp proved a particularly traumatic day in the history of this traditionally-lopsided rivalry.

Luis Suarez scored in a 1-0 win for the hosts in July last year to confirm Espanyol's relegation to the second tier for the first time since the 1993-94 campaign.

"That was a hard one," says Ramon Orriols, who now lives in England and is part of Espanyol's UK-based supporters' club.

"Thankfully there were no fans in the stadium due to the pandemic - I think Barcelona fans wanted us to go down and disappear. They don't like us and want to have the whole of Catalan football."

Nico Melamed, one of Espanyol's most promising young stars, was an unused substitute that day and remembers the sadness among his team-mates.

"It was a bittersweet feeling because I was finally fulfilling my dream of playing in the first division with the first team and reaching all that I've ever wanted," he tells BBC Sport.

"But on the other hand it wasn't a result we wanted and by the end of the match it was very dark.