Cocu and Xavi finally bring a smile to Barca

Goals from Philip Cocu and Xavi Hernandez in the space of less than two minutes at the end of the first half gave Barcelona a vital 2-0 victory at local rivals Espanyol on Saturday.

Before the match, Barca were lying down 15th in the Spanish first division, the lowest point in their history, and had not won in their previous five outings.
The win fulfilled the prophecy, at least temporarily, of new coach Radomir Antic who took over two weeks ago and had promised to bring a smile back to the faces of the fans and players of the crisis-sticken Catalan club.

"I can only see - and say - positive things about this match," said the ever-optimistic Antic.

"This will boost our spirits prior to the Champions League on Tuesday," added the Serb.

Barcelona took the game to Espanyol from the outset and had several chances before Cocu, unusually wearing the captain's armband, broke the deadlock in the 40th minute.

Xavi sent a long-range free kick into the box and Cocu's glancing header looped over the wall of Espanyol defenders before bouncing past an unsighted Toni Jimenez in the Espanyol goal.
Less than two minutes later, it was Xavi himself who got on the scoresheet, the Spanish international midfielder finishing off a fast counter-attack initiated by Patrick Kluivert and continued by Javier Saviola.

"In the first half, we did everything we should. The players went close to perfection. But I think it was normal that we eased up a bit after going two up," said Antic, in response to quesions about Barca's less-than-impressive second half.

Espanyol stepped up a gear after the break and, in sharp contrast to the first 45 minutes, continually attacked in a bid to get back into the match.

However, poor finishing and excellent work by Barcelona goalkeeper Roberto Bonano conspired to keep the home side from scoring.

Ironically, Espanyol's best chances fell to former Barca players Roger Garcia and Ivan de la Pena, who made their name as teenage sensations during Johan Cruyff's last two seasons as the Barca coach during the mid-1990s.

Barca's woes may not be over though, despite the three welcome points.

They often looked ragged at the back and Radomir Antic clearly still has yet to find a solution to injury-aggrevated defensive problems which plagued his predecessor Louis van Gaal.

Valencia kept up the pressure on the top two in Spain with a 2-0 win over Malaga, a result which extended their unbeaten streak to six games.

The reigning Spanish champions remain in third but only on goal difference.

Valencia have 42 points from their 22 games, the same number as second-placed Real Madrid and just two behind league leaders Real Sociedad although both their championship rivals have a game in hand and play on Sunday.

Sociedad play at Real Betis while Real Madrid have to travel to Osasuna.

After a forgetable first half, Valencia's Argentine defender Mauricio Pellegrino scrambled the ball into the net nine minutes after the break, after the ball ran loose around Malaga's six yard box.

The goal was Pellegrino's first of the season and Juan Sanchez had a similar reason to celebrate when he got Valencia's second after 75 minutes.

The second-half substitute flicked a low cross from Vicente Rodriguez into the net after arrived on the field only a few minutes before.

Deportivo La Coruna have not given up on the title either and proved that they are still in the hunt with a 1-0 win at Valladolid on Saturday.

The only goal of an otherwise scrappy game came from Deportivo's Dutch international striker Roy Makaay after 57 minutes.

Makaay produced a spectacular leap into the air to volley home an Enrique Romero cross from the left wing, scoring with the outside of his right foot.

The goal was Makaay's 16th of the season and extends his lead at the top of the Spanish first division scoring charts.