Yesterday, the owners of their country's cups were determined by England, Germany, Italy, and France, and today the winners of the Spanish "Copa del Rey" cup will be revealed. Teams that have already won titles in recent days, such as the "La Liga" champions "Barcelona" and the Europa League winners "Sevilla," will clash for this title. This time Eurofootball.com presents the review of the "Copa del Rey" cup final.
"Copa del Rey"
"Barcelona" - "Sevilla"
Path to the final:
"Barcelona":
Round 4: against "Villanovense" - 0-0, 6-1;
Round 5: against "Espanyol" - 4-1, 2-0;
Quarterfinals: against "Athletic" - 2-1, 3-1;
Semifinals: against "Valencia" - 7-0, 1-1.
"Sevilla":
Round 4: against "UD Logrones" - 3-0, 2-0;
Round 5: against "Real Betis" - 2-0, 4-0;
Quarterfinals: against "Mirandes" - 2-0, 3-0;
Semifinals: against "Celta" - 4-0, 2-2.
Team forms:
"Barcelona" ended the Spanish league not only with a series of five consecutive victories and clinching the champions title but also scored a total of 24 goals in those matches without conceding any. Unstoppable Luis Suarez scored 14 out of 24 team goals at the end of the season.
"Sevilla" finished the La Liga championship with three consecutive defeats but clearly focused on the Europa League tournament, which paid off for them. Winning this tournament for the third time in a row not only secured Sevilla a spot in next year's Champions League but also made them the record holders in the Europa League.
Team losses and returns:
"Barcelona" does not have any injured players before this match and had an easier preparation as they played their last match last weekend and could focus all their attention on the upcoming match.
On the other hand, "Sevilla" played the Europa League final match on Wednesday and returned to Spain only on Thursday. They will definitely miss the suspended Steven N'Zonzi and Timothee Kolodziejczak, while Benoit Tremoulinas and Jose Antonio Reyes are expected to miss the match due to injuries. Michael Krohn-Dehli, who suffered a serious injury, will also miss the match, and the Sevilla team hopes that Adil Rami, who suffered a minor injury, will not have to watch the match from the stands.
What coaches said before the match:
"Sevilla" played very well against us and put a lot of pressure. They beat us in their field and are a team that always causes problems. They are specialists in finals, especially when they are behind. This guarantees that this match will be attractive until the end, and we have to be prepared to overcome all difficulties. The cup final is one of the most attractive matches where you can play, and we have been working very well in recent weeks. This is the end of the season, and when you fight for titles, everything becomes much easier because players are motivated," said Barcelona coach Luis Enrique.
"Who knows if we will have the opportunity to fight again in the Copa del Rey final. We have that opportunity now, and we sacrificed a lot to reach this final. Barcelona needs the title because they live with titles, but our desire is our key to victory. In that aspect, we are the favorites. Why? Because we rarely have such an opportunity. How many times has Barcelona won the cup? Many. Meanwhile, we have celebrated it only a few times. Playing in the final is a gift for us, and we will open it with great joy," said Sevilla coach Unai Emery before the final.
Predicted lineups:
"Barcelona": Ter Stegen; Alves, Pique, Mascherano, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Iniesta; Messi, Suarez, Neymar.
"Sevilla": Soria; Mariano, Rami, Carrico, Escudero; Krychowiak, Iborra; Coke, Benega, Vitolo; Gameiro.
Key facts before the match:
This will be the second match between these teams for the title this season - in August, they needed extra time in the European Super Cup match, but Barcelona celebrated a 5-4 victory;
In nine consecutive matches between these teams, both sides have scored at least one goal each. On average, these clubs scored 4.8 goals per game in their encounters;
In the La Liga championship this season, both teams won against their opponents at home with identical scores of 2-1;
Barcelona has reached the Spanish cup final for the fifth time in the last six years. In the last four final games, they won two and were forced to admit the opponent's superiority twice;
Sevilla has reached two "Copa del Rey" finals in the last 20 years and celebrated victory in both of them. The last time they won the Spanish cup was in the 2009-2010 season;
Sevilla started this season's "Copa del Rey" championship with a 666-minute "dry" spell. In the remaining 54 minutes of the tournament, they conceded two goals;
Barcelona has sent 25 accurate shots on goal in the eight cup matches played so far - an average of 3.12 per game;
Barcelona has won the most Spanish cup titles - 27. Their current opponents have celebrated victory in the cup final only five times.
This weekend's cup finals:
Saturday:
FA Cup: "Crystal Palace" 1 - 2* "Manchester United" *after extra time
DFB Pokal: "Bayern" 0 - 0 "Borussia" (penalty shootout: 4-3)
Coppa Italia: "Milan" 0 - 1* "Juventus" *after extra time
Coupe de France: "Marseille" 2 - 4 "Paris Saint-Germain"
Sunday:
22:30 "Copa del Rey": "Barcelona" - "Sevilla"
Tautvydas Sakalauskas
