Following a spectacular win over Real Madrid in El Clásico to claim the Spanish Super Cup title at the weekend, Barcelona look to take another step towards their second trophy of the season when they welcome historic rivals Real Betis for their one-legged Copa del Rey Round of 16 tie at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium on Wednesday night.
Barça come into this one on the back of a brilliant performance against their biggest rivals, with their best version on full display while they had 11 men on the pitch. The Blaugrana were intense and ruthless in and out of possession, and suffocated Madrid to submission.
The finishing issues that plagued Barça at the end of 2024 seem to be behind them now, having scored 11 goals in the first three games of the new year with the sort of brutal efficiency we’re used to seeing from Hansi Flick’s men.
Now the challenge is to keep up that momentum, and build on their positive run to re-enter the La Liga title race while also advancing in the Cup and securing an automatic spot in the Champions League Round of 16 over the next couple of weeks.
It’s a big stretch of games for the Blaugrana, and the first is a rematch from the wild 2-2 draw at the Benito Villamarín at the beginning of December in which Barça wasted a two-goal lead in a game that seemingly had a big chance every 30 seconds for both sides.
It was a breathtaking contest that Barça should have won despite Betis’ brilliant showing, and the Catalans must learn their lesson from that evening in Seville and bring their scoring boots early on.
This is a Cup tie with no opportunity for a second leg, so Betis have absolutely nothing to lose and will likely use the same approach from the first meeting. The Verdiblancos will press Barça with intensity and look to create on the counter, and Vitor Roque will certainly relish the chance of scoring in front of the Montjuïc crowd if given a chance to start.
Barça and Betis refuse to play boring games, and the winner of this one will be three games away from a Cup final. It means a lot, and it should be a lot of fun.
Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Pena; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsí, Balde; Casadó, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Lewandowski.
Real Betis (4-2-3-1): Vieites; Sabaly, Bartra, Llorente, Rodriguez; Altimira, Johnny; Lo Celso, Isco, Ez Abde; Roque.
