Copa Del Rey
Barcelona Cruise Past Real Madrid
The Copa Del Rey seems to be very dear to FC Barcelona. In the second of three Clasicos in the space of a month, FC Barcelona put up a clutch second half performance to beat Real Madrid 3-0. The first leg at Camp Nou ended in a 1-1 draw with all to play for in this semifinal second leg. Real Madrid turned up with immense desire. They also looked to be the far better side for most of the game but alas, they could not find the end product. Barcelona were in dire need of at least one away goal but they were pegged back for almost the entire first half.
However, in the second half, they put on their shooting boots and showed a lot more intent and desire. And by the end of this terrific contest, there was only one clear winner. With this massive win, Barca booked their place in the Copa Del Rey finals for 6th season running. Tonight the Blaugrana will find out who their opponents in the final will be. Real Betis and Valencia will take each other on in another thrilling semifinal.
Hungry Real Madrid
The Galacticos were really eager to knock their fiercest rivals out in their own backyard. They played incredibly well and created tons of great chances. Vinicius Jr. in particular was very lively. He gave the Barca defense a very hard time. Sadly however, he did everything but put the ball in the back of the net. Real Madrid missed too many opportunities that would have put the game beyond doubt in the first half itself. Although they weren’t clinical, Barca keeper Marc Andre Ter Stegen made a few sensational stops to keep his side in the game as well.
Barcelona’s Second Half Resurgence
Just 5 minutes after the restart Barcelona decided to turn up the style. Jordi Alba played a neat through ball to Ousmane Dembele, who laid it off for Luis Suarez for an emphatic finish. Dembele was also tremendous throughout the second half. And it was Dembele’s cross again which lead to the second goal. He fizzed it across goal where Suarez was waiting but Raphael Varane stuck out a leg to block, but he put the ball in his own net. Moments later, Suarez burst into the box and Casemiro brought him down. Luis Suarez who has been far from his old self lately, returned to terrorize Real Madrid again. He stepped up to take the penalty and with icy composure to make it 3 for Barcelona. The tie was now beyond all doubt.
Despite being far from convincing, Barcelona booked their place in the finals at the expense of their biggest rivals. Now the two sides meet again in La Liga on Saturday. And Real will have revenge on their minds. The Catalans will however, will look to pull a double over Los Blancos and strengthen their grip on the La Liga trophy as well.
Photo credit to Barcelona via Twitter
