The last time Real Madrid walked out at Cornellà, the game took 54 minutes to break and then broke twice in the space of a few minutes. Both goals belonged to Vinícius Júnior. Los Blancos left Barcelona with a 0-2 win, and the Brazilian left with the headlines and another reminder that the RCDE Stadium is a ground where he tends to find space.
On Saturday night he goes back. Bernabéu Digital frame that May afternoon as the recent precedent that gives Real Madrid confidence going into their LaLiga opener — the first competitive match of José Mourinho's second spell in charge, and the first real evidence of what this rebuilt squad is. It is not a guarantee of anything. It is, at least, a useful piece of history.
Why Cornellà suits Vinícius Júnior
The fixture in question was matchday 34 of last season, played on 3 May 2026, and it was not comfortable for long stretches. Espanyol competed, held their shape and made Madrid work for openings that would not come. Then Vinícius Júnior found one.
He opened the scoring on 54 minutes after combining with Gonzalo García — since sold to Fulham — and struck again shortly afterwards from a move worked with Jude Bellingham. Two moments of individual quality settled a match in which Madrid were simply more efficient than their hosts, and the three points kept them mathematically alive in a title race Barcelona eventually won.
Sixteen years without losing an opener
There is a broader number behind the optimism, too. Bernabéu Digital report that Real Madrid have gone at least 16 years without losing their opening fixture of a LaLiga season — a run that has survived changes of coach, changes of generation and several complete rebuilds of the project.
The counterweight is worth stating, because the trip itself has not always been kind. The Real Champs point out that before last season's win, Madrid had failed to win two of their previous three league visits to the RCDE Stadium. Cornellà is a tight, loud ground where Madrid's superiority does not automatically translate, which is precisely why last May's result reads as reassurance rather than routine.
What Espanyol are planning
Espanyol head coach Manolo González was generous about the man in the opposite dugout and clear-eyed about the job. Speaking to the media, and quoted by Madrid Universal, he said: “Nothing scares me, but there's always respect, not just for Real Madrid, but for every team. A new coach, one of the best in the world and in history, as his trophy cabinet shows. It's a very demanding and motivating match at the same time, and it has to serve us to give everything we've got.”
Asked specifically how he intends to handle Vinícius and Kylian Mbappé, González was blunt about the limits of the exercise: “Try to defend together, stay organised and defend as well as possible. Against opponents of this level, you have to defend well the entire match and try to attack with purpose, without fear, knowing that they're also a team you can hurt.” He also flagged where he believes Madrid do their damage — “in central areas, in one-on-ones, and when running they're among the best in LaLiga”.
That is, more or less, a description of the two goals Vinícius scored here in May.
Kick-off, and the argument that follows
The match kicks off at 21:30 CEST (8:30pm BST) at the RCDE Stadium, with the full broadcast details already set out here — DAZN and Movistar+ in Spain, Disney+ in the UK and Ireland, ESPN in the United States. Mourinho has spent the week insisting on standards rather than making promises, and told his pre-match press conference that a season without trophies is not a successful one at Real Madrid.
For Vinícius, the wider context is a season that begins with his relationship with the Bernabéu still being repaired and a new coach who wants him running at defenders rather than drifting. Cornellà is where he last made that look easy. Ninety minutes on Saturday will say whether the precedent was a pattern or a memory.
