Spurs loan watch: Tottenham loanee makes his debut for Espanyol

Alejo Veliz's loan spell at Catalonia-based La Liga club Espanyol got off to a disappointing start as they fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat at the hands of Real Valladolid.

Veliz was named in Manolo Gonzalez's starting lineup, meaning he has already made more starts for Espanyol as he did in his previous La Liga loan at Sevilla in the second half of last season.

The Argentine striker was on the end of a nasty, though accidental headbutt early on and had to have treatment on his nose, but was fortunately able to soldier on and continued.

The Spurs loanee had a bright first game for his new side, recording: one shot on target, 1/1 successful dribbles, 5/6 ground duels won, 4/5 aerial duels won, two fouls drawn, one blocked shot, one interception and two tackles - showing the tenacious side of his game especially.

Spurs loan watch: Tottenham loanee makes his debut for Espanyol

Veliz was able to complete 70 minutes before being withdrawn for Antoniu Roca, as Espanyol were unable to find a reply to their hosts early goal.

Earlier in the window, the striker had been linked with a loan to newly promoted Premier League side Southampton, but instead joined Espanyol and the early signs are positive. As mentioned above, Veliz did not start a single game at Sevilla despite playing the second half of the season there last time out, and has immediately gone into the Espanyol side.

Whether he keeps his place in the team remains to be seen, but it is a great sign of trust that he was given the opportunity to start the first game of the season, especially considering he only joined the club on the 7th of August and was only able to feature in one friendly - for 28 minutes at that.

Next up for Veliz and his Espanyol counterparts is a tricky home against Real Sociedad on Saturday evening.