Barcelona vs. Real Sociedad: 2017 Spanish Copa del Rey Leg 2 Score, Reaction
Barcelona beat Real Sociedad 5-2 in the second leg of their Copa del Rey tie on Thursday, qualifying for the semi-finals by an aggregate score of 6-2.
Denis Suarez gave the Catalans the lead early in the first half, and Lionel Messi doubled their advantage from the penalty spot. Juanmi pulled a goal back for La Real, but Luis Suarez erased all hope for the visitors shortly after.
Willian Jose reduced the deficit again, but Arda Turan made it 4-2, and Denis Suarez doubled his tally.
As Barcelona's official Twitter account shared, manager Luis Enrique decided against resting Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar:
The hosts took control of the ball early, and it took less than a minute for La Real to commit a serious foul on Messi. From the start, the Basque side couldn't keep up with their opponents, an ill omen at the Camp Nou.
David Zurutuza almost reached Xabi Prieto with a through ball, and the midfielder muscled Messi off the ball shortly after.
Chances were few during the opening stages, but the Blaugrana struck gold with their first real opportunity. Prieto lost possession, and a quick, beautiful counter ended with Denis Suarez finishing the passing move in the 17th minute:
Raul Navas almost struck back immediately, as he found himself on the end of a perfect corner kick from Carlos Vela. The defender should have done better but aimed his header to the wrong side of the post.
Barcelona continued their fine attacking movements, and Messi and Suarez nearly combined for a magical second goal. The Uruguayan beat Geronimo Rulli with a lovely lob, but the flag had already been raised for offside.
Willian fired a volley over the bar after solid defending from Sergi Roberto, and the striker missed his touch in a great area after lovely work from Prieto. La Real had their chances before the break, but they didn't make the most of them.
On the counter, Neymar almost doubled Barcelona's advantage, but Inigo Martinez returned in time to make a key block.
The half ended with some pushing and shoving, as Vela and Neymar clashed after the Mexican clattered his opponent and raised his hands to his face. Both received yellow cards, and replays suggested the Sociedad man was lucky to still be on the pitch. Jordi Alba and Yuri Berchiche were also booked.
Goal's Ben Hayward dismissed some fans' suggestions that Neymar was innocent:
La Real started the second half in solid fashion, threatening with an early corner before another incident halted play. Luis Suarez threw an elbow at Yuri, who was furious when the striker received only a yellow card for his troubles.
The visitors should have scored in the 54th minute after a great attack through Vela and Willian, but the latter fired a shot straight at goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen. One minute later, Martinez brought down Neymar inside the box, and Messi doubled the lead from the penalty spot.
Per sports writer Sid Lowe, it all but ended the tie:
The action became fast and furious. Juanmi restored a little hope for the visitors by pulling a goal back after 62 minutes, lifting the ball over Cillessen. But the away supporters hadn't even finished celebrating when Luis Suarez beat Rulli after a great pass from Messi.
Barcelona opened up their attack, and Messi almost took advantage of a poor interception from Rulli.
But the Basques kept attacking as well, and Willian scored after 73 minutes to keep his side alive. Yahoo Sport UK's Andrew Gaffney thought it was too late:
And there was more to come. Turan replaced Neymar after 75 minutes and needed just five minutes to get his name on the scoresheet. Two minutes later, Denis Suarez added a second goal to his tally thanks to another great assist from Messi.
Per the Catalans' official website, Enrique was satisfied with the outcome of the tie:
Barcelona's next outing will be in La Liga at Real Betis on Sunday, while Sociedad visit Real Madrid on the same day.
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