Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid

Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys sets the stage for the first leg of a mouth-watering Copa del Rey semi-final tie between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.

Barcelona’s intense La Liga title race takes a quick stop as they continue their pursuit of a first Copa del Rey title since 2020/21 after enjoying an eye-catching run in this competition. Indeed, Hansi Flick’s charges have won all three cup ties this season via at least a four-goal margin, including a 5-0 rout of Valencia to set up this blockbuster showdown. Atletico Madrid’s visit could stir painful memories, considering ‘Los Blaugranas’ slumped to a 2-1 league loss in December. However, they’ve since racked up four wins in five home matches (D1), most recently beating Deportivo Alaves and Rayo Vallecano by a goal ‘to nil.’ Adding to Barcelona’s confidence, they had won three previous home H2Hs against Atletico Madrid and haven’t lost their last four Copa del Rey clashes against this opposition in Catalonia (W3, D1).

In the meantime, Atletico Madrid tightened the noose on their third La Liga title under long-serving manager Diego Simeone with a comfortable 3-0 victory at Valencia last weekend, extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to eight games (W5, D3). Back to Copa del Rey, where they have not triumphed since 2012/13, ‘Los Rojiblancos’ will be out to erase the memory of a 4-0 aggregate loss to Athletic Bilbao at this stage last season. Barring a narrow 1-0 win against Marbella in round three, Simeone’s charges have been ruthless in this competition this term, winning all four remaining ties with multi-goal margins, including a 5-0 thrashing of Getafe last time out.