Espanyol striker Wu Lei bagged a last-gasp goal on Sunday, ending his 666-day goal drought in La Liga, to drive his team to a hard-fought 1-0 win over Celta Vigo and revive their hopes of a top half finish. The result puts the Periquitos on 39 points, only two behind 10th-place Osasuna. 

During an intense showdown, Celta enjoyed great spells of possession without the ability to find a way through Espanyol's defensive block. Not that the Periquitos fared much better as they struggled to find any space behind the Sky Blues' back four.  

That changed quickly after the introduction of Wu, who came off the bench to inject much-needed urgency into his side's play after a slow first half. The Chinese star looked eager to run at Celta's defenders, forcing them to backtrack and make errors. 

The breakthrough finally arrived in the 89th minute when Wu received an astute pass from Sergi Darder before lashing a fierce angled shot past Celta goalkeeper Matias Dituro. It was the 30-year-old's first league goal since June 13, 2020 when Espanyol beat Alaves at home. 

"I'm happy that my goal helped the team to win and I'm thankful for the encouragement I've received from everyone all along," beamed Wu who was deservedly awarded Player of the Match.  

"In good times and bad, the fans have always supported me. I hope I can give the team more help in the future, and I hope everyone can keep supporting us," he added.

Wu will be keen to score in back-to-back games when Espanyol visit Atletico Madrid next Sunday, as they look to finish the campaign with a bang.

Later in the day, Manchester City retained their slim one-point advantage at the top of the Premier League as they were held 2-2 by their closest rivals Liverpool at Etihad Stadium. 

Kevin De Bruyne and Diogo Jota both found the back of the net early on before Gabriel Jesus restored City's lead. But Sadio Mane managed to find a second equalizer for the Reds and left the title race on a knife-edge. 

"Liverpool are a joy to watch, I know how good they are and there is no doubt about that but I am so proud of my team. I said to the team: 'I don't want one second sad,'" City Manager Pep Guardiola told a press conference after the showdown.

"We know now that one game and a dropped result, then we will not be champions," he added. "Will it be easy? Absolutely not but it will be difficult for them too. I don't know what will happen but the way we performed throughout the season and against this team to perform the way they did – I am proud." 

The mutual appreciation was echoed by his Liverpool counterpart Jurgen Klopp. "What a game. Wild," he said. "We can describe it like a boxing fight. Both arms down for a second and you get a massive knock. You can shake it off a bit and then the next knock is coming from the other team." 

"We wanted to make sure that they saw my boys are exceptional as well and I saw that today and am really happy about that," he added. "Now it is seven games to go for both teams. We will not stop chasing now. That is clear."