FC Barcelona has been unstoppable in La Liga play and that has carried over into Spanish Copa del Rey tournament matches as the team has a 7-0 lead entering the second leg of a semi-final matchup against Valencia. The team dominated Valencia in their first meeting thanks to big goals from Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi giving them a comfortable lead entering Wednesday. However, with Messi out, can the squad repeat the success?
Gary Neville understands why Valencia fans might be upset. The club has looked dismal over the past few months and the ugly loss to Barcelona only highlighted that. Valencia sits in 14th place in the Primera Division after losing their first nine La Liga play. Valencia has a storied history as a program and now that Neville cannot carry that tradition out, he is facing rumors of being fired. A good showing against Barcelona could end some of that talk, but not by much.
Neville described the second leg of the semi-finals as a must-win game as they return to their home pitch. The team is really out of the tournament altogether following the 7-0 loss, but playing well could restore some fan faith. The team will be getting players back from injuries that could help in the match. Francisco Vallalba will be available to play along with Diego Alves who has been out for eight months with a knee injury. That could at least help put a little pressure on Barcelona in this match.
Barcelona is currently riding a 28-match unbeated streak which is a club record. However, they will likely be playing with Messi this time around. The striker underwent a minor kidney procedure to help cure an issue dated back to December. Messi has missed training all week and had the procedure on Tuesday. Neymar and Suarez will also be out for this meeting as ESPN reports they will be rested thanks to the comfortable 7-0 lead.
"It won't be an easy game, and it will be a bit strange after the result of the first leg," Luis Enrique said, via ESPN.com. "But it's a good test for us, because it's the chance to show that we are still competitive in any situation. We need to forget about the first-leg result and go and play to win like we always do."
Barcelona is expecting Valencia to come out with more power than they had in the first leg of the tournament. However, chances are slim they are able to match the 7-0 score which means Barcelona will be moving forward in the tournament.
