Espanyol thrash hapless Athletic Bilbao

Espanyol have continued their revival under Javier Aguirre tonight with a convincing 4-0 win over Athletic Bilbao at the San Mames.

The visitors opened the scoring on 20 minutes when Hector Moreno met an accurate cross from Juan Verdu to send home a powerful header.

Bilbao tried to respond before the break but were restricted to long shots from Oscar De Marcos and Markel Susaeta.

Espanyol stunned the San Mames with two goals either side of the hour mark to earn only their second away win of the season.

First Victor Sanchez caught Bilbao goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz napping to tap home from close range before Christian Stuani smashed home after another Iraizoz error.

Aguirre's men added shine to the scoreline in the closing stages when Sanchez got the rebound after missing a penalty for his second and Espanyol's fourth.

The Periquitos move above Bilbao into 13th place in La Liga with the win and are now eight points clear of the relegation zone.