Looking to reclaim a shred of pride following their Supercopa de Espana final humiliation, Barcelona make the trip to Campo de Futbol Reina Sofia on Thursday to face third-tier Unionistas in the Copa del Rey Round of 16.
Spanish third-tier side Unionistas are all set to host reigning La Liga champions Barcelona in the Round of 16 of the Copa del Rey.
Barcelona are going through a tough phase at the moment. The Blaugrana were pumped 4-1 by arch-rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final on Sunday, with Vinicius Junior bagging a first-half hat-trick. To make matters worse, Xavi Hernandez’s side went down to 10 men as Ronald Araujo was sent off in the 71st minute, resulting in Barcelona’s third straight Clasico defeat.
The Catalans looked utterly devoid of ideas on the ball throughout the game, and their defence, which once used to be their strength, has been their most glaring weakness this season.
Now, La Liga champions would want to escape the humiliation of back-to-back cup defeats, although the chances of that occurring are slim. Sunday’s defeat was Barcelona’s first in six games, and they face a third-division Unionistas side, who were only established 10 years ago and will be competing in the Last 16 for the very first time.
Dani Ponz’s men have been a revelation in this season’s Copa del Rey, overcoming Gernika and Sporting Gijon before setting this historic tie against Barcelona with a spectacular penalty-shootout success over Villarreal in the Last 32 of the Copa del Rey.
Team News & Tactics
Unionistas
With 17 shots against a pretty strong Villarreal outfit, Unionistas showed a certain attacking quality, and, especially in front of a packed 5,000-seat humble home ground, they can put pressure on stronger teams.
The hosts are expected to go ahead with the same XI that started in their shootout win over Villarreal. They managed to put in a complete attacking performance in the Last 16 tie and will hope for something similar this time around.
Right-back Sergio Camus was substituted at half-time in the same game, although this appeared to be a tactical change by head coach Dani Ponz, and Camus should be good to go here.
Ponz handed goalscorer Alfred Planas a start against Rayo Majadahonda in league action. But he failed to make the desired impact after scoring the equaliser against the former Europa League winners in the previous round and was taken off around the hour mark.
Juan Serrano could be recalled into the starting XI to provide more flair to the attack, while 20-year-old Real Madrid Castilla loanee Javi Villar will partner Hector Nespral in the engine room.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Camus, Mayor, Gimenez, Jimenez; Nespral, Villar; Planas, Serrano, Gomez; Slavy
Barcelona
The Blaugrana will be without the services of Ronald Araujo and Lamine Yamal for Thursday’s Copa del Rey Last 16 affair with the Unionistas at Renia Sofia due to respective bans.
The former was handed marching orders for two bookable offences in Sunday’s Supercopa de Espana final defeat to Real Madrid, while Yamal will be serving the second of a two-game cup ban that he picked up at youth level.
Among the injured absentees are Gavi (ACL), Marcos Alonso (back), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (back), Raphinha (hamstring), and Inigo Martinez (hamstring).
Furthermore, Joao Cancelo’s knee injury that kept him out of the Supercopa is likely to keep him sidelined for this Last 16 match, and the Portuguese’s injury, along with Araujo’s ban, could see Xavi elevate 17-year-old Hector Fort to the first XI.
Andreas Christensen, Jules Kounde, and Alejandro Balde should all retain their roles at the back despite a woeful, all-over-the-shop defensive display over the weekend, as should ter Stegen’s backup custodian, Inaki Pena, in goal.
Xavi will shuffle his pack in midfield, though, with both Fermin Lopez and Oriol Romeu vying for minutes in the first XI. Pedri, who played only 61 minutes in the Supercopa final, may keep his place as the advanced midfielder.
With Yamal banned, Ferran Torres is the most apparent choice on the right side of the attack, while Joao Felix should return to the starting lineup as well. If Xavi thinks that Robert Lewandowski needs a rest, Vitor Roque could earn his first Blaugrana start.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Pena; Fort, Kounde, Christensen, Balde; Lopez, Romeu, Pedri; Torres, Roque, Felix
Key Stats
- This will be the first-ever meeting between Unionistas and Barcelona.
- Barcelona have been eliminated in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey just once in their last 13 seasons — in 2021/22 against Athletic Bilbao.
- Unionistas have only lost once in the last five games in all competitions.
- Barcelona have lost two games in the last five matches in all competitions.
- Barcelona have just kept one clean sheet in the last five matches.
Player to Watch
Pedri
The youngster will take a while to get back to his best after an injury-riddled first half of the season. But he could hold the key to Barcelona salvaging their flailing season. He will fill the creative void in Barcelona’s midfield, which has been lacking for quite some time. Playing in the advanced midfielder role against a lower-tier side, he will look to advance the ball between the lines and glide through space with aplomb to break down a deep block.
Prediction
Unionistas 1-3 Barcelona
Having seen off Barbastro in the previous round and with far greater difficulties than many anticipated, Barcelona could be put to the test once again by another lower league side on Thursday.
Unionistas are side who ought to play with plenty of freedom and be fearless, and their tails will be up, looking to capitalise on Barcelona’s low morale and energy levels after Saudi Arabia disappointment.
Having said that, the visitors have too much quality in the offensive department for their third-tier hosts to cope with, but expect Unionistas to cause Barca and Xavi’s job security a fair few problems before going down fighting. The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 3-1 victory for the visitors.
