MADRID, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Wi Lei made history on Saturday when he became the first Chinese player to score a goal in the LaLiga.
The forward, who joined Liga Santander club, Espanyol in January, scored Espanyol's third goal in a 3-1 win at home to Valladolid, which lifts the Barcelona based club to 11th place in the league table, with 33 points from 26 games, to give them a comfortable cushion over the relegation zone.
Wu Lei had promised in a press conference of Thursday that his first goal in Spain would not be long in arriving because "I have great team-mates who give me good passes."
Those words were proved to be true in the 65th minute of the game and with Espanyol leading 2-1.
Sergi Darder threaded a ball through the Valladolid defense for Wu Lei to control, look up and calmly slot the ball past Valladolid keeper Jordi Masip to seal the win.
He was replaced to a long ovation from the home fans in the 83rd minute after assuring the win and there was even a group of Chinese fans with flags and banners to show their support. As the match report in sports paper Diario AS informed "Espanyol now speak Chinese."
