FC Barcelona Fends off Real Madrid Offensive in Copa Del Rey 2nd Leg

Clásico contests between Real Madrid and Barcelona rarely disappoint, and the riveting encounter in the second leg of their Copa del Rey quarterfinal was no exception. Real entered the Nou Camp facing the prospect of overturning a 2-1 disadvantage in the aggregate score on a pitch that haven’t won on since December of 2007.  

The week that was between their first leg match saw fissures of dissent open up within the Madrid camp. Jose Mourinho was roundly booed by the home fans over the weekend in a 4-1 victory over Athletic Bilbao. Alfredo di Stefano, Madrid’s legendary player, openly criticized the Portuguese manager for repeatedly failing to overcome the Catalans.  

Such is the nature of Barca’s complete dominance over the series lately that many thought the game itself was losing its usual rabid degree of tension and anticipation. The mosaic of color and the cauldron of noise that was a packed Nou Camp suggested otherwise. 

The Madrid lineup reflected a complete reversal of philosophy from Mourinho—a gamble that was more likely to get him strung up by the Madrid press than pay dividends. Mesut Özil and Kaká joined Cristiano Ronaldo in a 4-2-3-1 formation, the three attacking midfielders in behind Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuaín.

The intent was clear that Madrid was putting their best offensive weapons on the field in an effort to maximize harm when/if they enjoyed possession and on the counter attack. But would the space left behind prove too much of a liability against Barça’s roster of talented ballhandlers? Pepe, he of the hand stomp in the first leg, was dropped out of the middle of the park to a back line with Coentrão, Sergio Ramos and Arbeloa.

Unbelievably, Madrid almost were, and should have been, up a goal within 15 seconds of the opening kick. Higuaín stepped inside of Pique after he essentially ignored a back pass, only for his side footer to slip well wide of the far post. Real pushed positively in Barça’s zone and more good chances came within the first five minutes.

Kaká and especially Özil were active on the ball in Barcelona’s half, overlapping runs seamlessly and making Ronaldo look very threatening on the counter. Barcelona’s defense, on several occasions, was scrambling, the aggressive moves forward seemed destined to reward los blancos on the score line in the first 30 minutes.

But the flow of the game even without midfield maestro Iniesta, who went out to injury in the 29th minute, came back under Barcelona’s hypnotic control.

Messi dropped back deeper to receive balls, springing the wider players into space whenever Madrid’s defense attempted to close him out. One of his patented runs produced the first blaugrana goal in the 43rd minute when, tethering the ball from his shoe tops, he flicked a delicate little pass between Madrid wedge of Pepe and Arbeloa onto the path of Pedro. 

A minute later, la pulga exacted his revenge on Pepe, chopping him down with a left kick to the shin to the delight of the Nou Camp faithful. 

Dani Alves then bookended a cruel first half for the merengues, a deflected ball setting up for his right footed stripe to the top left corner. Counting a similar crack from Özil in the 25th minute that hit the upper 90 posts, you could easily argue that Madrid could have been up by two or three goals. Instead they were down 2-0 in the match, 4-1 in the aggregate.

The second half was due to be processional affair for the Catalans. Indeed, they controlled much of the tempo after the restart, displaying typically fluid play. Like a confident boxer dancing around a wounded opponent, Barça’s spell of one-touch passes and fluid movement was entrancing but dangerously arrogant. 

Complacency at the back was the crack that Madrid came pouring through. Özil, a threat all night, freed Ronaldo, who danced around a flailing Pinto before tucking it into an empty net in the 67th. Merely four minutes later Benzema, having come on for Higuaín, benefited from an errant clearance that Callejón headed his way. The French international showed silky skill in flicking the ball around Puyol and controlling with his thigh before slotting it by Pinto. 

Little more than 15 minutes to go, 2-2. Just like that Real was, improbably, one goal from winning not only the game but also the Copa tie. 

Panic was spreading at the back for Barça, defensive lapses having also blemished their La Liga campaign. Özil again ran through Barcelona’s left flank in the 74th, delivering an ideal ground touch to Ronaldo in the box, who couldn’t connect.

However, when Sergio Ramos picked up a second yellow card with three minutes to play in regulation, the threat dissipated. Gaps behind Madrid’s attacking formation allowed for a few good looks on Casillas’s goal before a string of yellow cards for both clubs and the final whistle.

While Madrid were denied the opportunity to defend their Copa trophy by their archrivals, this thrilling match may have injected new life into the Clásico. The squads play again in Barcelona on the 22nd of April for their league fixture, but more titillating may be the possibility of another home and away meeting in the latter stages of the Champions League.

Surely Mourinho is feeling better than he was on the weekend. The speed of Özil and, in the second half, Benzema up front caused Barcelona some serious problems. This night’s encounter bared some modicum of weakness in the Barcelona machine.

The result, albeit an empty one, is a moral victory, they played better than their opponents for large stretches. Despite not finding the winner, Madrid had a confident stride about their play, which should carry over into the next anticipated clash between the Spanish giants.