Barcelona (Spain), March 2 (IANS): Espanyol's Spanish forward Borja Iglesias on Saturday notched the fastest La Liga goal of the season as he gave his team the lead over Valladolid just 18 seconds into the match. It also saw his teammate Lei Wu become the first Chinese to score in La Liga.
The 26-year-old Borja broke the standing 2018-19 La Liga season record set by Rayo Vallecano midfielder Alvaro Medran at 29 seconds when he found the back of the net, also against Valladolid. It turned out to be the only goal in Rayo's 1-0 win as hosts on January 5, reports Efe news.
The third-fastest La Liga goal of the season is in the name of Athletic Bilbao Spanish midfielder Raul Garcia. He scored within 42 seconds against Eibar. This goal also was all Athletic needed to prevail over visiting Eibar on February 23.
Borja's goal was the fastest ever in the history of Espanyol's RCDE Stadium, inaugurated in 2009. He continues to prove his worth with Espanyol having bagged 11 La Liga goals. He notched another three Copa del Rey goals to become the Barcelona-based team's top scorer.
Despite the early lead, a goal by Valladolid midfielder Ruben Alcaraz in the 17th minute cancelled out Borja's speedy effort.
The visiting team had a chance to take the lead in the dying minutes of the first half when Valladolid was awarded a penalty kick, but goalkeeper Diego Lopez, a former Real Madrid player, blocked forward Sergi Guardiola's attempt.
The second half brought more good news for the home side as central defender Mario Hermoso gave Espanyol the lead back and for good just ten minutes into the second half.
It took Espanyol another 10 minutes to put the game out of Valladolid's reach as China winger Lei Wu scored the third goal.
Having joined the Spanish team during the winter transfer window after a 12-year spell at Shanghai SIPG, Lei became the first Chinese player to find the back of the net in the history of La Liga.
After the win, Espanyol temporarily climbed to the 11th spot in La Liga table, while Valladolid remained on the 16th spot with 26 points.
Valladolid, however, could slip further pending the remaining matchday results.