Barcelona obliterated Espanyol8217;s home dominance with braces by Pedro Rodriguez and David Villa to claim the Catalan capital derby 5-1 and provisionally move five points clear of second-place Real Madrid in the Spanish league on Saturday.
Espanyol had conceded only two goals in its seven victories at El Prat-Cornella Stadium,but Barcelona needed just 30 minutes to double that number and beat the best home side in the league. Rodriguez raced by the pair of Espanyol center backs to slot a ball from Lionel Messi past a diving Carlos Kameni for Barcelona8217;s 19th-minute opener.