Augusto Fernández is booked for a poor tackle on Pablo Piatti.
That's the final whistle!
90' +3
Pau López gets yellow.
Espanyol goalkeeper Pau López is shown a yellow card by the referee.
90'
There will be a minimum of four minutes added time played here.
89'
Š. Vrsaljko gets yellow.
Another Atletico man picks up a yellow card, the right-back Šime Vrsaljko the latest.
88'
Sergio García has scored a goal for Espanyol! Assist by Granero.
The substitute heavily involved in that goal, it was a terrific ball to pick out Sergio Garcia at the far post, he just had to time his run correctly and guide the ball into the net
GOOOAAALLL ESPANYOL LEAD! The hosts break the deadlock late on, with a terrific counter-attack and finish by Sergio Garcia! They broke with pace, caught Atletico out at the back, Esteban Granero with a low cross to the far post where Sergio Garcia was waiting, and he made no mistakes with the finish. A first-time finish, straight into the bottom corner giving Oblak no chance of saving it.
87'
There isn't long left on the clock here, can either side mount a late surge and secure a final three points in 2017? This result doesn't do either side many favours, as Atletico try to close the gap on Barcelona at the top of the table, meanwhile Espanyol needs wins to stay up.
86'
Granero enters the game and replaces Darder.
Espanyol change now, with Sergi Darder coming off and he is replaced by Esteban Granero.
85'
A. Fernández enters the game and replaces Gabi.
Atletico make their third and final change of the evening, with the captain Gabi coming off, just minutes after picking up a booking and he has been replaced by Augusto Fernández.
83'
Gabi gets yellow.
The tackles are certainly flying in here, with Gabi the latest player to be shown the yellow card by the referee.
82'
Javi López gets yellow.
A late challenge by Javier López on Greizmann, sees Atletico awarded a free-kick and the Espanyol captain is shown a yellow card.
Minute
Description
80'
Both teams are threatening on the counter-attack now as the pace of the game steps up a notch, with just 10 minutes left on the clock it looks like just the one goal would secure victory for either side now, as chances have been few and far between this evening.
78'
Good chance! Gerard Moreno draws a decent save from Oblak, the hosts are really trying to go for the victory here and they broke forward with pace, it fell to Moreno who fired a shot at goal, but it was too close to the Atletico keeper.
76'
GREAT CHANCE! Atletico with their best opportunity of the second half, with the substitute Kevin Gameiro sprinting through on goal, after a delightful pass in behind by Greizmann. The Frenchman had Saul racing into the box to his left but he opted to go for goal himself, but his effort was straight at Lopez, who made a comfortable first save of the evening. The pass to Saul was the better option there, who was screaming for the pass.
75'
The game is starting to become more open and end-to-end, with both teams starting to become sloppy in possession, losing the ball in dangerous positions on the pitch.
73'
Koke gets yellow.
Koke is shown a yellow card for a late challenge on Pablo Piatti, it was a high tackle and the referee was straight over to show the card.
72'
P. Piatti enters the game and replaces Léo Baptistão.
Espanyol respond by making their first substitution of the game, with Leo Baptistão coming off and he has been replaced by Pablo Piatti.
70'
K. Gameiro enters the game and replaces Fernando Torres.
Here comes the second Atletico change of the evening, with Fernando Torres the man heading off the pitch and he has been replaed by Kevin Gameiro.
67'
It looks like Simeone is preparing another change, adding a fresh pair of legs in the attack to try and break the deadlock here at the RCDE Stadium.
65'
Corner to Espanyol, can they find the breakthrough goal? No. The set piece is well defended. The hosts will certainly be more pleased with their performance tonight, considering their position in the league, but Atletico always keep going and tend to stretch teams in the final third of the game, which we are entering now.
63'
Á. Correa enters the game and replaces T. Partey.
Atletico make the first substitution of the evening, with Thomas Partey heading off the pitch. The winger was a lot more involved in the opening 45 minutes, but he didn't have the same impact in this second period and he has been replaced by Ángel Correa.
60'
As we pass the hour mark in this game, it remains goalless and we are still struggling to see either side truly look like scoring, it is heading for a 0-0 draw at the moment. Both sides are yet to make a change here, but that surely can't remain the case for too much longer.
58'
CHANCE ESPANYOL! They find space inside the visitors' penalty area and the ball falls to Garcia, he fires a low shot at goal which is blocked and then bounces dangerously around the box, but there aren't any other Espanyol attackers near the ball and Atletico manage to clear the danger.
56'
Plenty of Atletico dominance in possession here, but like the first half it is all in the middle of the pitch and they are really struggling to get into the final third, which isn't pleasing Diego Simeone on the sidelines who is as animated as ever inside his techincal area.
54'
STAT: Espanyol have lost six of their last eleven games at home in La Liga and they failed to find the back of the net in seven of those matches.
51'
Saúl gets yellow.
The first yellow card of the game is shown to Saúl and he will now miss Atletico's next game due to suspension. However, it looks quite harsh by the referee, he fends off David Lopez and his arm strikes the face of the Espanyol man, but there didn't appear to be any intent.
50'
The pace of the game is fairly good, with both teams trying to attack quickly and carve open each other's defences, but there are very little chances being created by either side and this game is likely to be decided by just one goal.
48'
Koke is fouled deep inside the Espanyol half, close to the wing after a late challenge by Hermoso and this has given the visitors a very good opportunity, with Griezmann waiting to whip the ball into the area. It is met by Filipe Luis, but he is flagged offside.
46'
The second half is underway!
45'
That's the half-time whistle!
42'
Excellent defending by Mario Hermoso, he blocks a low cross into the box by Griezmann, which looked to be heading straight into the path of Torres, but Hermoso smashes the ball over his own crossbar, giving the visitors a corner. However, once again the set piece is well defended.
40'
PENALTY SHOUT! Atletico are furious that they haven't been awarded a spot-kick after Griezmann nicks the ball past Pau Lopez deep in the box, but he was always going down and the referee just awards a goal-kick. Griezmann got there before the Espanyol keeper, he then takes another touch before falling to the ground and it doesn't appear that the keeper touches him. It looks like the correct decision by the officials.
37'
Antoine Griezmann has scored in three of his last four games against Espanyol in La Liga, scoring two goals in his last two visits to RCDE Stadium. The French international only has five goals so far this season, not his best return for his club side, but his international form has continued to excel.
35'
Griezmann releasing Torres down the left flank, the ball appears to be slightly overhit but the veteran striker just about manages to catch up with the ball and he wins a corner out of nothing. However, the corner is well defended by Espanyol and the clear the danger.
33'
We're past the half hour mark here at the RCDE Stadium, not too many chances by either team but Atletico are looking to dominate the game, keeping the ball and making Espanyol track across the pitch. The visitors have a good history of tiring teams out and grinding out results this season and there is plenty of time left on the clock.
31'
Decent chance for Atletico! Good deep cross into the box by Fernando Torres, with Partey and Vrsaljko both looking to meet it at the far post, they are completely unmarked but they don't appear to communicate to each other and they get in each others way! This allows Baptistao to get back and make an excellent clearance.
28'
This is the final fixture in 2017 for both teams, they will want to go out on a high, picking up all three points and starting the new year full of confidence. Both teams will start the new year with Copa del Rey fixtures, with Espanyol away at Levante and Atletico playing Lleida.
25'
The free-kick is initially cleared, it falls to David Lopez on the edge of the area, he fires a first-time shot at goal, which forces Oblak to push it over the crossbar. It looked to be heading just over the bar, but the Atletico keeper had to make sure.
24'
Since that poor miss by Baptistao a few minutes ago, the home side have been on top, playing the ball around the pitch nicely and frustrating Atletico. They have won a free-kick in a good position to whip the ball into the box, the big men stride forward, can they threaten Oblak's goal?
22'
STAT: The last win for Espanyol against Atlético in La Liga came back in October 2013, when they secured a 1-0 victory over tonight's opponents.
19'
GREAT CHANCE! He should've scored and given Espanyol the lead! Leo Baptistao with a terrible miss but it was a fantastic opportunity to give his side the lead. The hosts broke forward on the counter-attack after Filipe Luis gave the ball away on the half-way line. Sergio García breaks forward, he then plays a ball to his left, feeding Baptistao. The winger only has Oblak to beat, he tries to chip it over the onrushing keeper, but he chips it awfully wide!
17'
Atletico have been sloppy in possession in the last few minutes, giving the ball away in poor positions and it is allowing Espanyol to put pressure on them, getting into their defensive third. However, Atletico are still looking by far the better side early on.
15'
Leo Baptistao wins a free-kick deep inside the Atletico half, close to the corner flag after a poor foul by Sime Vrsaljko. The ball is whipped into the area, headed clear to the edge of the box and it falls to Serge Darder, he takes the shot on the volley, but he doesn't get enough power on the effort and Jan Oblak makes a comfortable save.
13'
Atletico are unbeaten in seven games against Espanyol, winning five of them. Plus, six of their last seven victories over the Catalan club have been in games producing few goals. There hasn't been many goalscoring chances here so far, with both teams just looking to work each other out at the moment.
11'
The visitors continue to dominate possession here, Espanyol are struggling to get a touch on the ball but Atletico aren't carving them open at the moment, it is all in the middle of the pitch and well away from the final third. Partey's chance still the best opportunity of the game so far.
8'
There are plenty of empty seats here at the RCDE Stadium, which has been the case for many of the Espanyol home fixtures this season, due to their poor form and league position in La Liga.
6'
CHANCE ATLETICO! Griezmann with a good pass into the feet of Thomas Partey just inside the Espanyol penalty area, he fires a powerful shot at goal but he slices his effort well wide of the goal.
5'
STAT: Atlético are unbeaten in their last 20 La Liga games, winning 13 and drawing seven, which is their longest unbeaten run in the competition. Many of those wins coming in the form of 1-0 victories, as the visitors tonight haven't scored an awful lot of goals this season.
3'
Early dominance by Atletico, controlling possession of the ball and pressing forward with Antoine Griezmann getting plenty of early touches here and they are keeping Espanyol penned inside their own half.
1'
We're underway!
Good evening and welcome to our LIVE match commentary of the La Liga clash between Espanyol and Atletico Madrid.
Atletico haven't conceded many goals per game in La Liga this season and they have a terrific away clean sheet ratio, similar to their 2013-14 title success. The visitors come into the game on the back of hard fought back-to-back 1-0 victories.
They will have Diego Costa available in January, giving them an excellent chance to mount a title challenge, particularly now they don’t have any Champions League commitments. Meanwhile the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid continue their quest for Champions League success.
Espanyol are sat in 16th position and it has been a disappointing season so far for the Catalan side. The hosts drew 2-2 draw at Las Palmas last weekend, but they threw away three points late on in that fixture, with their opponents mounting a dramatic late fightback to level the game, before missing a penalty which would have sealed victory.
The main struggle for Espanyol this season has been a lack of goals, they have offered very little threat in the final third and have failed to score in half of their matches in the league.
The teams news is in, here is how the two sides will line-up this evening...
Atletico head into their final fixture of 2017 in second place, with the chance to close the gap to leaders Barcelona to just three points this evening with victory over struggling Espanyol.
ESPANYOL (4-2-3-1): Pau López (GK); Javi López (C), Hermoso, Duarte, Aarón; David López, Javi Fuego; Darder, S. García, Leo Baptistao; Gerard
ESPANYOL SUBS: Diego López, Marc Navarro, Naldo, Melendo, Piatti, Roca, Granero
The teams are out and kick-off is just minutes away! Stay tuned for all of the match action.
HALF-TIME: ESPANYOL 0-0 ATLETICO
A tight game so far between two teams which are struggling to score goals this season. Atletico seeing more of the ball, but they haven't really carved the hosts open and Espanyol had arguably the best chance of the game, through Leo Baptistao when he was released through on goal early on, but his finish was poor.
FULL-TIME: ESPANYOL 1-0 ATLETICO
That's all from us tonight folks, we hope you enjoyed the game!
Atletico fall to their first defeat of the season, after a late goal from Sergio Garcia snatched all three points for the home side. A terrific victory for Espanyol and a vital one, which moves them up to 14th position in the table and a five point gap between themselves and the relegation zone. The game lacked many goalscoring chances, with Atletico not at their best tonight and they remain six points behind Barcelona, and Valencia could move above them tomorrow with a win.
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