Athletic Bilbao 0-4 Barcelona: 5 hits and flops as Lionel Messi magic guides Catalans to Copa Del Rey final triumph
Barcelona won their first trophy of the Ronald Koeman-era after brushing aside Athletic Bilbao 4-0 in the Copa Del Rey finals.
Two brilliant goals from Lionel Messi, coupled with goals from Antoine Griezmann and Frenkie De Jong, condemned Los Leones to their second cup final loss in a week.
The first-half was a cagey affair with few chances and ended 0-0 at the break. However, Blaugrana came flying out of the blocks in the second-half and tore Bilbao apart.
Messi, in particular, looked in an inspired form, and scored two lovely goals as Barcelona lifted their fifth Copa Del Rey title in the last seven years.
Here are the hits and flops from the match:
Hit: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
He's simply the man for big occasions. Lionel Messi put Bilbao to the sword on the night with two lovely goals.
The first was a work of art, with the skipper doing a neat one-two with De Jong while bursting forward at exceptional pace and then cutting onto his left before firing into the far corner.
It was almost reminiscent of his Puskas winning goal against Los Leones in the 2015 finals.
Messi then followed it up with a second, producing a strong finish off Alba's cross and effectively ending the tie as a contest.
He may be turning 34 soon but Messi is still far from done.
Flop: Unai Simon (Athletic Bilbao)
He was good in the first-half, making a couple of crucial stops to keep the scoreline level at the break. However, it all went downhill thereafter.
As Barcelona piled forward with belligerence to lay siege to Bilbao's goal, Simon cut a listless figure between the posts.
His confidence was knocked out of him as the Spaniard helplessly watched the likes of Messi and De Jong bombard the net behind him.