A day after Real Sociedad’s narrow win on the Celta Vigo pitch and Girona’s shock defeat to Mallorca earlier in the evening, Athletic Bilbao welcome FC Barcelona to San Mames this Wednesday in the quarter-finals of the Coupe du Roi. At the end of the two qualifiers, which were painful against fourth and third division teams during the last two rounds, Barca were expected to turn the corner against a Basque team that intends to continue its current momentum, with only one defeat in the last fifteen encounters. All competitions. In front of a galvanized crowd, the Rojiblancos took control from the start. After a high recovery, Nico Williams overflowed on the right and headed to the penalty spot. Favoring Inaki Williams at the front of the Basque attack, Guruzeta triumphantly recovered a fumbled ball in the Catalan area, only for Pena to hesitate, and thus put his team on the right track (1st).
Stunned by this early score, Xavi’s protégés dampened the opposition’s spirits by putting their foot on the ball before launching a few unsuccessful attacks. To make matters worse, an injury to Balde (23rd) dealt another blow with Barça’s exit. Determined to get back into the game, the Catalans let the storm pass and managed to equalize with a goal, against the run of play. Like a fox on the surface, Lewandowski defied Berchiche’s clearance and tricked Agirrezabala (26th). Minutes later, Yamal followed suit to give Barça the lead. On a failed transition from the Basque, the Spanish international left Berchiche behind and infiltrated the realm of truth. Inspired, the 16-year-old found Agirrezabala’s small net with a curling left-foot shot to score his third goal of the season (32nd). Undeterred for nearly twenty minutes, Athletic finally started counter-pressing as half-time approached. Pushing Barça to its limits, the Bilbao club nevertheless came up against the last bulwark, Pena. Vigilant on his line, the Spanish goalkeeper parried a full-line volley from Senset (42nd), allowing his team to return to the locker room with a one-goal lead.
The Williams Brothers Overthrew the San Memes!
Back on the field, Athletic Bilbao returned with better intentions than Barca. Thus, the pattern of the first act was repeated for space. Using opposing defensive bulk to perfection, Nico Williams headed in the direction of the Sunset. Forgotten at the far post, the Iberian put an unstoppable cross header into the small left net of Pena (2-2, 49th). In dire situations, Xavi’s men were literally subject to Basque law. With the Catalan defense completely overwhelmed by the events, Guruzeta appeared on the penalty spot and tried to flirt a header with Pena’s bar (56th). Still under enemy fire, Barca counterattacked to give themselves breathing room. Started by Lewandowski, Yamal presented himself alone against Agirrezabala but missed his tackle (65th). Bis repeated it 5 minutes from the end of the game where this time the Spaniard, though alone after eluding his Basque counterpart with a subtle hook, slipped the frame when the goal was reaching him (86th). Meanwhile, Inaki Williams, back after playing CAN with Ghana, also missed a real chance against Bilbao (74th).
Quite logically given the nature of the match, both teams were given an extra 30 minutes to decide between themselves. As usual, Bilbao pressed from the start and relied on the Williams brothers to keep the Catalans in check. Served by his brother on the left wing, Nico Williams finished off his opponent before taking his chance. However, his slightly deflected shot grazed Pena’s target (96th). Always insistent on the right, Iñaki Williams regained the leather high and looked past Herrera, without result for Barça (98th). It was ultimately through an individual exploit from the Ghanaian that Athletic Bilbao managed to defeat the Catalan neighbours. Alert in his lane, the Rojiblancos’ number 9 twice attempted to finish off the goal abandoned by Pena, surprising the Basque’s first attempt (105th + 2) with his left post. Adding his stone to the building, Nico Williams offered himself a gem in the last moments of the game and made the score a little worse (121st). Thus, Athletic Bilbao earned a much-deserved qualification to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. Having fallen behind in the La Liga race after being knocked out of the competition, Xavi’s FC Barcelona have some concerns…
Pub. The
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