Barcelona progress but Neymar is out
Lionel Messi scored twice at the Alfonso Perez stadium, to give Barcelona a 2-0 victory that sends them through to the quarter finals of the Copa Del Rey six nil on aggregate.
With Barca already 4-0 up from last week’s first leg (in which Messi also scored twice after climbing from the substitutes bench), it seemed that victory was a formality. Getafe had some hope, however, in that they previously beat Barcelona by four goals in the Copa in 2007. The fans in the south Madrid suburb didn’t seem to expect a repeat – it was a disappointingly sparse crowd.
Tata Martino named a strong side with both Messi and Neymar starting. Messi scored his first just before the interval. Tello swung the ball over from the left and at first it looked as if it might have gone straight in, but replays confirmed that Messi had diverted it in with a flick of his thigh. His second goal was typically mercurial, gliding past defenders before slamming the ball home from an angle.
It wasn’t all good news for Barcelona, however. Neymar twisted an ankle in the first half as he attempted to cross the ball and was stretchered away in some pain. It is expected that he could be out of Barcelona’s title challenge for at least a month.
Perhaps the most significant moment of the night came when Xavi was introduced as a second half substitute – it was his 700th appearance for Barcelona’s first team. A remarkable achievement from one of the Barcelona all-time greats.