Wu Lei earned Espanyol a dramatic 2-2 draw at the RCDE Stadium after he fired in an 88th-minute equaliser to salvage a point in the all-Catalan clash of La Liga's top against bottom.

The 28-year-old drove decisively past Barcelona's stand-in goalkeeper Neto and into the far corner but his goal owed much to a brilliant reverse pass too, executed by teammate Matias Vargas.

Both players had been introduced by new coach Abelardo Fernandez in the second half and Wu said after the match that Vargas had predicted he would give him a chance.

Luis Suarez appeared to have inspired another turnaround at the RCDE Stadium after he cancelled out David Lopez's opener with a deft half-volley before digging out an exquisite pass for substitute Arturo Vidal to finish.

But a red card for Frenkie de Jong with 16 minutes left gave Espanyol renewed hope and Chinese forward Wu emerged the hero, firing past stand-in goalkeeper Neto to rescue a point in Abelardo Fernandez's first game in charge.

The 42-year-old, who succeeds Italian FIFA World Cup winner Marcello Lippi, also revealed that his initial contract is only until the middle of this year.

Li was named to the top job in Chinese football on Thursday, tasked with reviving their hopes of reaching the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Finals.

The Chinese Football Association (CFA) said Li, who played in China's only FIFA World Cup Finals appearance in 2002, is an "outstanding representative of Chinese football players" and was appointed after an open process.

Li is already familiar with the national side having been in temporary charge during the EAFF Championship in Korea Republic last month. The 42-year-old was the manager of Chinese Super League club Wuhan Zall before his appointment.

The 44-year-old Dutchman succeeds the attack-minded Dragan Stojkovic, whose departure was announced less than 24 hours earlier.

A star for the club during his glittering playing career, Majidi’s appointment comes after former Inter Milan and Udinese manager Andrea Stramaccioni stepped down from the top job on December 9.

The door had seemingly been left ajar for Stramaccioni to return to the role, but Esteghlal confirmed the Italian’s departure was permanent last week, with Majidi subsequently signing a one-and-a-half-year deal with the two-time Asian champions.

Majidi takes the job on a full-time basis having briefly held the reins at Esteghlal on a caretaker basis after the departure of German boss Winfried Schaefer last April.

The star-studded club took the lead off an own goal by Kashima defender Tomoya Inukai in the 18th minute, then doubled the advantage when the ball ricocheted into the net off striker Noriaki Fujimoto 20 minutes later.