Existence Pere Milla as a rival will mark the main plot of the upcoming game on Saturday at 21:00, with Elche CF hosting Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium in Cornellà-El Prat, a clash that directly pits two teams in the same league race against each other.
The Catalan striker has been the hero of Elche’s historic ascent to the First Division, with a memorable goal that remains etched in the club’s memory from Girona on August 23, 2020. He rose from being one of the Franjiverde fans’ idols to a central threat when the next match arrives, a player whose presence stirs both nostalgia and competitive intensity.
Two summers ago, the Ilerda-born footballer created one of Elche fans’ most anticipated chapters. He departed with a farewell letter while pressing for a contract renewal. After a long negotiation process, the club’s owner, Braganik, recognized the affection of the supporters and renewed the deal for three seasons through 2025.
Pere Milla ends soap opera and renews with Elche
There is a long-standing sense that Pere Milla has always been tied to Elche, a player whose near-move circumstances have shaped the club’s summer narratives. He expressed happiness after reaching an agreement, noting that the decision aligned with his own wishes. A video message circulated on his personal social networks, reflecting gratitude and a sense of belonging: home is home, and the weeks of uncertainty were heavy, but the path ahead felt right.
There was a public post accompanying the message, reinforcing the sentiment that the bond with Elche runs deep, even as the team faced tough negotiations. The phrase home is home was reiterated during the following season, underscoring his loyalty in the eyes of many supporters.
Yet in August of the following year, only a year after the renewal, whispers resurfaced about a potential transfer to Espanyol. The proposal would move Milla closer to Barcelona, driven partly by family considerations as his wife prepared to welcome a child, prompting a desire to be nearer to home and family life.
As with the renewal, Bragarnik eventually sanctioned the transfer, valuing the relationship and the player’s circumstances. The deal was set at 2.5 million euros plus a 500,000 euro bonus should Espanyol achieve promotion.
Pere Milla: “I am very grateful to Elche, but Espanyol is another story”
Although once among the most cherished Elche players, Pere Milla soon found himself facing rival status in the race back to the top tier. His presentation with the new club after the switch made clear his perspective: offers from higher divisions existed, but his priorities shifted. Espanyol, with its historic stature, presented a different challenge in a higher tier, even if it was still in the Second Division at the time of the switch.
New colors replaced the green-and-white shield that had defined his heart for years, a reminder that football can demand emotional recalibration. The sentiment of the game remains constant even as loyalties shift—a reminder that the sport often moves people just as much as people move the sport.
Now the moment arrives to face the team that once felt like a second home, a club he celebrated with on many occasions. Pere Milla will meet teammates and coaches from his recent past, stepping into a match that carries the weight of a direct promotion duel. The aim is simple: score, and help his new club as they chase a resurgence against his former team, Elche, in a high-stakes contest that could swing the standings by a couple of points.
133 league appearances across all spells, with 22 goals to his name, reflect a period rich in memory. In the prior seasons, he logged 37 appearances and four goals in the Second Division, and he played three matches in the First Division with Elche in a stretch that saw him contribute meaningful numbers. Across his Elche tenure, he wore the jersey in 133 league games and netted 22 goals, helping to secure promotion and earning multiple top-flight campaigns for the club.
In the current campaign, he has appeared in 13 matches for Espanyol, accumulating over a thousand minutes on the pitch and contributing three goals. Early in his time with Espanyol, he found the net, but his form in later months drifted as the season progressed—an evolution that colors the narrative of a player who has never been afraid to chase improvement, even when the path led him away from his original home.
Early season form showed promise, but recent performances have seen a steady decline in prominence. The upcoming Saturday match promises to be a turning point, a moment when a player known for peak moments of joy and drama must decide how to impact a pivotal fixture. The two teams are separated by only a narrow margin in the table, and this clash could tilt the balance in favor of the side that manages to capture the decisive moment on the field.
The question on many lips remains: will Pere Milla celebrate if he scores against Elche? If the match were played at the Martinez Valero stadium, the answer would likely be a nuanced mix of emotion and restraint, given the fans who idolized him. With the venue now the RCDE Stadium, the atmosphere shifts, and the crowd dynamics will be different. Emotions have a say in football, yet financial and professional motives frequently steer decisions as well. Pere Milla’s career path has been shaped by both love for Elche and the lure of new opportunities, a balance that will play out in the coming Saturday clash.
In the end, the encounter will be more than a game. It will be a test of where Pere Milla’s loyalties lie and how a player who once sparked elation in Elche can translate that energy into a challenge for his former team. The next match is a reminder that football is a constantly evolving story, written as much by decisions off the pitch as by goals on it.