Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi gave his team a major advantage in the Copa del Rey match against Atletico Madrid by scoring with just three minutes to go in the first leg.
As a result, Barcelona will be much more relaxed going into the second leg despite this tie being at the Vicente Calderon. The Catalan club will be looking to win the first title since 2012. This major trophy drought has been created due to several changes at the club over the last few years. Even now, they remain in an unbalanced state with speculation surrounding the future of manager Luis Enrique.
Reports of a fallout between Enrique and Messi have constantly been going around even though the duo have denied those rumours.
Such statements have also increased the transfer interest surrounding Messi, who could cost well in excess of £ 100 million should he leave the Catalan club. After having recently beaten Atletico Madrid twice – in the league and in the cup, Barcelona will be confident ahead of the second leg. However, both the victories have come at the Camp Nou and it will be interesting to see if the second placed team can repeat a similar fate in front of the Atletico supporters.
The Vicente Calderon will certainly be buzzing for this match especially given that Atletico eliminated their arch rivals Real Madrid in order to reach the stage of the competition. If they are to get past Barcelona, then Diego Simeone’s team will be placed as the favourites to win the title. Last season, they witnessed Madrid winning the title before coming close to beating them in the Champions League final. Simeone will be aware that the league title will be difficult to achieve this season. Hence, he may focus on the cup.“Looking forward to playing in Madrid. We’ll give everything on the pitch to reach the semi-finals,” said Messi.