The tie at the Power8 Stadium got off to a very slow start. As both sides are keen on going far in the Copa, they perhaps showed each other too much respect as neither wished to leave themselves exposed. But eventually, Espanyol would come away with a 3-1 victory.

The first chance of the game fell to Sevilla. Jose Antonio Reyes struck a free-kick that ricotched off of the Espanyol wall and into the path of Denis Suarez, but the Barcelona loanee failed to capitalise on the rebound. Out of nowhere, Espanyol kicked into gear and their resurgent Ecuadorian striker, Felipe Caicedo scored his fourth goal in as many games. The striker hit a marvellous drive that sailed past Sergio Rico and into Sevilla's goal. Suddenly, Espanyol had something to cling on to.

Sevilla continued to dominate possession. Reyes and Suarez tried their best to create opportunities for Kevin Gameiro, but they rarely troubled Espanyol’s defence. Meanwhile at the other end, Caicedo continued to threaten. Rather surprisingly, he struggled to maintain his composure as he squandered several half-chances.

The second half seemed to be a repeat of the first. Sevilla were trying to cause Espanyol trouble, but even with Carlos Bacca and Gerard Deulofeu being introduced by Unai Emery, they failed to convert any opportunities that came their way. In the 74th minute, Sevilla’s Alejandro Arribas was whistled for handball in the box. Although it was a rather harsh decision, it meant that captain, Sergio Garcia was given the opportunity to double Espanyol's lead from the penalty spot. He stepped up and cooly slotted his spot-kick home.

Espanyol certainly weren't finished there. Substitute Lucas Vazquez raced through and placed his shot under the oncoming Sergio Rico, both could merely watch as the ball trickled into the bottom corner. It was an excellent finish from the attacker and the home crowd were loving every minute of it.

The only negative for Espanyol will be the fact that Carlos Bacca scored a late goal. It the last minute of stoppage time and Espanyol failed to clear their lines from a corner. The ball fell to Bacca who smashed home from inside the six-yard-box. Bacca's goal has given Sevilla a fighting chance as they now have crucial away goal in the tie.

Apart from the scrappy late goal, it was a perfect performance from Sergio González' side. However, if Espanyol want to advance into the semi-finals, they will need to score at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, which isn't an easy task.