Marcus Rashford and Trent Alexander-Arnold weren’t the only English footballers to decide try their luck in Spain over the summer and Tyrhys Dolan has hit the ground running

English footballers have been all the rage in La Liga this summer, with Trent Alexander-Arnold joining Jude Bellingham at Real Madrid and Marcus Rashford completing a loan move to Barcelona. They weren’t the only ones, though, and compatriot Tyrhys Dolan has hit the ground running since joining Espanyol from Blackburn in a summer switch which might have flown under the radar – at least compared to those other two deals.

Espanyol ended last season just two points clear of the drop zone, but have suffered defeat in only one of their opening seven matches – away to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu – and will finish the weekend in the European positions if they can overcome Real Betis on Sunday. Former Manchester City academy talent Dolan has contributed significantly, claiming two assists in a 3-2 triumph over Mallorca and chipping in defensively, vindicating his choice to take a major leap when his deal at Ewood Park ran out.

“Being a free agent, you’re going to get quite a few offers, which I did. But when the Espanyol offer got brought to me, that was something that I felt like I needed to take that next step into my career,” Dolan told the Mirror.

“La Liga is obviously one of the best leagues in the world and for me, it’s a real challenge, one that I wanted to take. It’s stepping out of my comfort zone, and I think that’s when you see players, you know, make them sacrifices and go on and test themselves, it brings out the best of them, so, you know, that was what was appealing to me.