Copa Del Rey: FC Barcelona will take On Atletico Madrid in the First Leg

Tuesday, 20 January 2015

Copa Del Rey: FC Barcelona will take On Atletico Madrid in the First Leg


This is gonna be another clash of the titans in football. Atletico Madrid gain promotion to the quarter final by removing champions Real Madrid. Barcelona's bid for a record 27th Copa del Rey crown is sure to be tested by Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.

The first leg of a mouth-watering quarter-final takes place at Camp Nou, as Barca and Atletico clash for just the second time since last season's epic title-deciding meeting.

Barca needed a win to secure the league title on that occasion, while a draw was enough for Atleti - a scenario that became a reality after Diego Godin cancelled out Alexis Sanchez's first-half strike.

Atletico's first league success in 18 years meant Barcelona ended the campaign without a major trophy for the first time since the 2007-08 season.

Life looks better under new coach Luis Enrique, though, with Barca having won their past four in a row - scoring 16 goals in the process - since a shock loss at Real Sociedad earlier in January.

Barcelona's latest win, a 4-0 success against Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday, was highlighted by Lionel Messi's 30th hat-trick for the club. They remain one point adrift of leaders Real Madrid.

Of those four straight wins, one came against Atletico, with Barca's star trio - Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez - all scoring in a 3-1 home success. Another came in the Copa del Rey's last 16, as they hammered Elche 9-0 on aggregate.

Luis Enrique would love a repeat but Atletico are in handy form themselves, having knocked out city rivals and holders Real Madrid in the competition's quarter-finals last week.

A Fernando Torres brace ensured they drew 2-2 at The Santiago Bernabeu, giving Simeone's side a 4-2 aggregate triumph.

Torres paired with Mario Mandzukic on Sunday and Atleti's new combination looked particularly lively in a 2-0 win over Granada.

Barcelona will be without defender Douglas Pereira for the match, who will miss up to a month with a hamstring problem.

Sevilla have won nine of their past 10 matches and will hope their form continues when they visit Espanyol for the first leg of their last-eight clash on Thursday.

Unai Emery's side have risen to fourth in the league as a result of their terrific run, and they beat Espanyol 2-1 earlier this season.

Elsewhere, Villarreal - who sit sixth in the table - begin their tie at home to Getafe on Wednesday, while Malaga play host to Athletic Bilbao in the other quarter-final.
 
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