Espanyol 0 - Barcelona 0

Espanyol: Mora; Navas, Lopo, Rotchen, David García (Arteaga 64'); Galca, Sergio; Velamazán, Martín Posse (Lardín 74'), Roger; Tamudo. 4-2-3-1.
Barcelona: Dutruel; Reiziger, Frank De Boer, Puyol; Luis Enrique (Sergi 91'), Xavi, Rivaldo (Petit 23'), Cocu; Zenden (Simao 67'), Kluivert, Overmars. 3-4-3.

Team changes: Espanyol: Navas, Galca, Tamudo for Cristóbal, Morales, Serrano / Barcelona: Xavi, Kluivert for Guardiola, Gabri.

Goals: None.

Espanyol and Barcelona ended their local derby as it started, with 0-0 on the scoreboard. The match was played on a waterlogged pitch after a torrential downpour hit the stadium just prior to kick off, and the wet and slippery pitch made any attempt at creative football difficult. Nevertheless both sides did their best in an open game which produced several scoring chances for both sides. Barcelona's caretaker manager Charly Rexach was in charge for the second match, and he only made two changes to his first line up, Kluivert coming back from a one match ban to replace the suspended Gabri, with Luis Enrique and Rivaldo dropping further back, and Xavi coming in for Guardiola, who was also sitting out a one match ban. Paco Flores's team was almost back to full strength, with Tamudo returning from his one match ban and Galca now recovered from an injury back in the side. Navas came in for the suspended Cristóbal. Barcelona's club president Joan Gaspart was in the directors' box for the first time since being declared "persona-non-grata" by Espanyol after apologising for controversial statements he made in the past.

Espanyol have had to play on a waterlogged Montjuic pitch more than once this season, and they used their knowledge of the conditions well early on, with Posse forcing a good save out of Dutruel in the second minute. Gradually though Barcelona found their feet, and Overmars sent a header just wide with a quarter of an hour gone. But then they lost Rivaldo, who picked up a painful knock on the hipbone early on, and Petit came on to replace him, with Luis Enrique pushed further forward. The introduction of the Frenchman gave them more stability in midfield, but without their Brazilian star and Guardiola there was nobody to make the plays, and the game developed into a dour struggle in the centre of the park. With seven minutes to go to halftime Dutruel misjudged a punched clearance and the ball fell back in front of his own goal, Cocu making an acrobatic clearance before Posse could react.

The second half opened with Zenden finding room down the right wing, and after the Dutch international had hit the foot of the post with a shot Flores replaced the inexperienced David García with Arteaga, Roger dropping back to a role he has played much this season, left back. Still he managed to join the attack on occasions, and he brought the best save of the night out of Dutruel with a long shot which the French keeper tipped round the post. At the other end Cocu almost surprised Mora when he deflected Petit's shot towards the bottom corner of the net, but Mora too demonstrated why he has the second best record in the league this season with a reaction save. Velamazán missed an opportunity in front of goal with only Dutruel to beat, and Luis Enrique was clearly disappointed when Mejuto González turned down his penalty appeal after Rotchen clearly hung on to his shirt to stop him reaching a cross from the left.

In the dying minutes Kluivert, Overmars and Zenden's substitute Simao all sent shots wide as they lost their footing, and with Barcelona looking for a late winner Rexach surprised the fans stopping the game to take off Luis Enrique to put on another defender Sergi. It was a negative move, but the caretaker manager was concerned that Espanyol could still take the three points with one of their counterattacks, and he was taking no chances. It meant though that Barcelona had gone seven games without a win (nine counting the two UEFA cup legs against Liverpool), and with Valencia winning they slip even further away from those oh so important Champions League spots. Celta are also breathing down their necks, now only two points behind them, and a win by any of the other chasing teams on Sunday will even put their presence in next year's UEFA tournament in doubt. Espanyol's ambitions in that respect are a little damaged by this result, and they are now five points behind Celta. The blackspot of the day though was the flare set off by idiots in the crowd which hit a policeman on the back of the head, luckily without causing too serious an injury. Only a few of seasons ago a young boy was killed when he was caught full in the chest by one at Espanyol's old Sarría stadium. Some people never learn.