Hansi Flick’s Barcelona will take on Valencia away from home on Thursday for a place in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey.
Valencia will not only be eyeing a spot in the last four when they host Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey, but they will also be looking to avenge the 7-1 thrashing they suffered at Estadi Olympic Lluis Companys at the hand of the Catalan giants less than two weeks back.
The home team have been far from their best this season. They are 19th in La Liga, and survival in the Spanish top flight is their primary objective at this stage. While not much has gone their way this season, Los Che are heading into this fixture on the back of a 2-1 win over Celta Vigo, and it will certainly give them some confidence.
Valencia defeated Ourense CF 2-0 to make it to the last eight, and now they need to take down one of the giants of Spanish football to progress further in the cup competition. Speaking of, the visitors might have lost control of the La Liga title race, but they have bounced back in recent weeks and are just four points behind league leaders Real Madrid.
The Blaugrana have been unbeaten in their last nine games, and they are heading into this fixture on the back of a 1-0 win over Deportivo Alaves. Barcelona smashed Real Betis 5-1 in the round of 16 to make it this far in the cup competition, and they will be confident about making it to the last four. The Hard Tackle takes a close look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.
Team News & Tactics
Valencia
The home team will be without the services of Thierry Correia. While Dimitri Folquier, Enzo Barrenechea and Diego Lopez did pick up a knock last time out, the trio is expected to be available to start against the Catalan giants.
Valencia are unlikely to make any major changes to the XI that started in their last outing. The home side will line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, and Stole Dimitrievski should be in goal given he has featured in all their cup competitions.
The back four will be made up of Dimitri Foulquier, Jose Gaya, Cesar Tarrega, and Cristhian Mosquera. Foulquier and Gaya on the flanks, while Tarrega and Mosquera will feature in the heart of the defence.
As for the midfield unit, Javi Guerra and Enzo Barrenechea will form the double pivot. They will shield the backline and try to ensure the Barcelona midfielders do not dominate the ball too deep in their half. In attack, Diego Lopez and Luis Rioja will provide the width, while Andre Almeida will take up the no. 10 role. Hugo Duro should be the one leading the line for Valencia against Barcelona.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Dimitrievski; Foulquier, Tarrega, Mosquera, Gaya; Guerra, Barrenchea; Lopez, Almeida, Rioja; Duro
Barcelona
The visitors remain without the services of Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Andreas Christensen, and Marc Bernal. Dani Olmo’s participation in this fixture remains a doubt. Meanwhile, Gavi might be rested here following a head collision in their win over Alaves.
Hansi Flick will be making a few changes to the XI, and he could even make a slight tactical change with the team lining up in a 4-3-3 for this outing. Inaki Pena should return to take charge in goal.
Meanwhile, the back four should be made up of Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsi, Eric Garcia and Alejandro Balde. Cubarsi and Garcia will be in central defence, while Kounde and Balde will be on the flanks.
As for the midfield unit, Frenkie de Jong should take up the role of a defensive midfielder and he will have the support of Pedri and Fermin Lopez. They will look to control the tempo of the game. Raphinha and Lamine Yamal will continue to feature on the flanks, with veteran striker Robert Lewandowski leading the line for Barcelona against Valencia.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Pena; Kounde, Cubarsi, Garcia, Balde; Pedri, De Jong, Fermin; Yamal, Lewandowski, Raphinha
Key Stats
- Barcelona have won 34 out of the last 63 matches against Valencia, who only have 12 wins to their name.
- Valencia have won three out of their last four games in all competitions.
- The Catalan giants have been unbeaten in their last nine games across competitions.
- Hansi Flick’s team have only kept one clean sheet in their last seven games which came last week in their 1-0 win over Alaves.
- The home team have conceded 13 goals in their last three games against the Blaugrana.
Player to Watch
Fermin Lopez
Every time Barcelona take the field, all the eyes are on their exceptional front three who have been scoring goals for fun. While they do get all the limelight, their midfield is the one that ensures their dominance.
Fermin Lopez might not be a regular starter but he has eight goal contributions in just over 900 minutes of first-team action. The youngster is expected to start here, and he will be looking to make an impression on his manager.
Prediction
Valencia 1- 3 Barcelona
Given what happened last time when the two teams squared up against each other less than two weeks back, Valencia will surely be pumped to avenge that 7-1 thrashing, but they are not going to find it easy to take down one of the giants of Spanish football.
Barcelona have been in red-hot form and they should be able to get the job done. While it will be much closer than it was last time, the Catalan giants should still come out on top. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-1 win for the away team.