New Delhi: Barcelona recorded a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid at the Camp Nou to secure a smooth passage to the quarter-finals of the Copa Del Rey.
It was a strange situation in the Camp Nou on Wednesday night. Lionel Messi’s wonderful hat-trick seven days ago gave the Blaugrana a comfortable 3-1 first-leg victory, and with the home side in simply sensational form the Catalan faithful could be forgiven for thinking that the tie was over as a contest.
Pep Guardiola threw in a mix of fringe players along with some experienced heads, and as the Primera Division has witnessed this season Barcelona attack at every opportunity – and they would be guaranteed to attack from the outset this evening. Bojan and Gudjohnsen were given the opportunity to gun down Atletico.
Aguirre’s side are also an attacking outfit, but with the deficit they had to throw caution to the wind, and it led to a hugely entertaining first half. It was end-to end stuff, with Barcleona’s open style actually aiding Atletico by giving them space to attack Marquez and Caceres in defence.
Indeed Atletico took the lead, giving the match an added injection of interest. Camacho swung a dangerous ball into the area, and Sinama Pongolle nipped in front of a flapping Jose Pinto to nod the ball into the net. At this stage, it was all to play for.
However, with the offensive prowess of the likes of Iniesta and Hleb, Barcelona would inevitably create openings, and they took just four minutes to draw level. Left-back Sylvinho whipped in a fantastic delivery, and the prodigious Bojan leapt majestically to power a header past Coupet and crashing into the net. It was a beautiful Barca equaliser, and Atletico were back to square one in their quest to do the impossible and turn this tie around.
But Atletico kept going, and almost regained the lead when Simao burst through the centre, his shot was partly blocked by the legs of Pinto, but as the ball rolled agonisingly toward the line the Mexican Marquez managed to hook the ball clear.
Barcelona had their chances, too; Coupet had to look sharp to save with his legs from Alves, while Iniesta and Gudjohnsen almost wriggled through on numerous occasions but the final pass just wasn’t finding its target. Up at the other end in this relentless half Raul Garcia blasted into the side net from the edge of the box. Despite their best efforts the sides went in at 1-1 at half-time and Atletico still had a mountain to climb.
The second half was never likely to keep up with the breathlessness of the first, and Barcelona resorted to hitting on the counter attack to protect their lead. Atletico pressed for a goal that would bring them back into the tie and make for an interesting finish to the match, but despite the best efforts of Simao and Aguero in particular, the Blaugrana stayed strong.
And on seventy five minutes, they made the match safe with a well-worked goal that owed much to the invention of Andres Iniesta. The little Spaniard slalomed down the by-line skipping past challenges and cut the ball back to Sergio Busquets. His initial effort was blocked, but Eidur Gudjohnsen was on hand to hammer the ball home to make the score 2-1 on the night and 5-2 on aggregate.
Atletico coach Javier Aguirre looked on pensively from the touchline. He was under pressure before the match, and this defeat is likely to increase speculation that the Mexican could be heading out of Madrid sooner rather than later.
However, it was yet another win for rampant Barcelona. Can anyone in Spain stop them this season?
Goals:
Barcelona:
Bojan (28’), Gudjohnsen (76’)
Atletico:
Sinama-Pongolle (24’)
Barcelona: Jose Pinto, Sylvinho, Marquez (Puyol 65'), Caceres, Alves (Abidal 83’); Iniesta, Hleb (Messi 73'), Yaya Toure, Busquets; Bojan, Gudjohnsen
Atletico: Coupet; Lopez, Ibanez, Pernia, Perea; Simao, Camacho (Luis Garcia 46'), Raul Garcia, Banega, Sinama-Pongolle, Aguero (Cuevas 72')
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