What a chance for Griezmann! The shot loops harmlessly into Simón's arms. Other than that, it's been total Barça domination since the break. Leo Messi, Sergio Busquets and Gerard Piqué have now won seven Copas del Rey each, joining Athletic Club’s José María Belauste and 'Piru' Gaínza as the competition's most decorated players. Peeeep! Marvellous goal. We found it very hard to get to the final and I think the team played very well from start to finish. Experience suggests the Basque and Catalan fans would not have listen in polite silence. Well, this is interesting - Ronald Araújo is warming up for Barcelona, it appears. Long live Barça and long live Catalonia! Barcelona make another change, replacing Piqué with Ronald Araújo. It’s a tough moment, but we’ll pick ourselves up.". In his attempts to clear Alba's cross into the box, Martínez thumps the ball straight at Lekue, and it bounces right to Busquets some six yards out. There's a chance for Raúl García... but he heads into the ground and over! He and Óscar Mingueza are taken off, with Ousmane Dembélé and Martin Braithwaite coming on. You have to feel for Athletic; missing out on the Copa del Rey twice in the space of 15 days, one of them to your local rivals... well, that's uncharted territory when it comes to cup-final disappointment. Collect it he does, but Yeray blocks the Argentine's shot. I have one more year of my contract. We have to keep working hard for this badge.”, “I’m really happy to have won this trophy. That Lionel Messi strike is his eighth career Copa del Rey final goal, meaning the Barcelona star has drawn level with the legendary Telmo Zarra as the player with the most Copa final goals ever. For Barcelona, meanwhile, tonight’s clash at Seville’s Estadio de la Cartuja represents an opportunity to get revenge for their 3-2 defeat to Athletic in January’s Spanish Super Cup final at the same venue. That's now a record nine goals in Copa del Rey finals for the Argentine. Chosen11. Sometimes it's a little bit strange. the Barcelona defender said. Having denied Pedri with a very decent stop, Simón now produces an absolutely top-notch save to prevent Busquets from scoring what seemed like a certain goal! “It’s a very tough moment for us; we were excited to play this game and were raring to go, but Barcelona were the better side. Die Copa del Rey 2020/21 ist die 117. That said, Ronald Koeman's men have only once come genuinely close to scoring, when Frenkie de Jong hit the post in the fifth minute. Peeep peep peeeep! Williams plays it back to Vesga to shoot from 20 yards, but the substitute blazes high and wide. Athletic Bilbao are playing in the Copa del Rey final for the second time this month, having lost to Real Sociedad in the delayed 2020 final on April 3rd. Messi slips Dest in behind the Athletic defence and into crossing space on the right-hand side of the box. "Congratulations Culers! Griezmann's shot hits the Athletic keeper, bounces back off the forward, and drifts just wide of the post. The Basque side lost 1–0 to regional rival Real Sociedad in the 2020 Barcelona have been in rather better form, on the other hand: until last weekend’s defeat to Real Madrid, Ronald Koeman’s men had not lost in LaLiga in 19 games - a streak that has pulled them back into contention for the league title. In Spain - … They dominated us.”, "They were better than us and it really hurts. Not only would it ensure they avoid a second straight trophyless season - although they’re also in contention for LaLiga, of course - but it might go some way to persuading the soon-to-be-out-of-contract Messi that it’s worth sticking about next season. Solo por participar en esta edición de la Copa, Athletic y Barcelona ya habrían ganado 666.801,98 euros. Messi scores a sumptuous solo goal! That'sn a very decent stop - Pedri's strike was fizzing into the bottom corner. A round-up of the latest Barcelona news and rumors. Dest has Griezmann all on his own in the middle, and finds the Frenchman with a low ball into the six-yard box... but Simón saves! Moments later, Messi jinks inside Dani García and flops to the turf 25 yards out from goal, but the referee says no free-kick. Raúl García touches the ball down towards Williams at the near post, but the striker can't collect and Barça clear. Starting line-up: Ter Stegen, Mingueza, Piqué, Lenglet, Dest, Busquets, De Jong, Alba, Pedri, Messi, Griezmann, Substitutes: Iñaki Peña, Arnau Tenas, Araujo, Braithwaite, Dembélé, Trincão, Sergi Roberto, Umtiti and Moriba, Startling line-up: Simón, De Marcos, Yeray, Íñigo Martínez, Balenziaga, Berenguer, Dani García, Unai López, Muniain, Raúl García, Williams, Substitutes: Ezkieta, Morcillo, Núñez, Vesga, Lekue, Yuri, Villalibre, Capa, Vencedor. We just have to keep on going. The Argentine plays a one-two-three-four with De Jong, before advancing into the right-hand side of the box, cutting inside Unai Núñez and rolling a nonchalant finish past Simón and into the far corner, easy as you like. La final de la Copa del Rey 2021 se disputará, sin público, en el Estadio de La Cartuja, recinto situado en Sevilla (Andalucía, España). Since beating Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final in January, Athletic Club’s form has taken something of a nosedive. Does this Copa win strengthen Ronald Koeman’s position as head coach? At halftime, Barça had all of the possession but only one real chance to score while Athletic survived the first 45 minutes, hoping to score against the run of play in the second half. Griezmann lays it back to Pedri, who shoots low towards the near post from the top of the of the box, but Simón is quickly down to parry! "If you would like to hear my opinion about this, it's a little bit strange that I need to answer questions like this. Athletic Club midfielder Dani García has said sorry to the club’s fans in the wake of Los Leones’ second Copa del Rey final defeat this month, telling reporters: “We apologise to the fans because these have been two big blows. Athletic make a second substituion, replacing Berenguer with Mikel Vesga. It’s been an unusual year, one of transition. Athletic Club faces FC Barcelona in the final of the 2021 Copa Del Rey at the Estadio Olímpico de Sevilla in Seville, Spain, on Saturday, April 17, 2021 (4/17/21). Alba fires in a low cross from the left, but it's cleared. I can confirm that Athletic Club Iker Muniain did NOT touch the cup, and therefore hasn't irrevocably jinxed a second final in as many weeks. We were the better side.”. COPA DEL REY . Lekue has slotted into the right-back role, with De Marcos stepping up to right midfield and Berenguer moving across to the left of the midfield to fill the void left by Muniain. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. In the one other change to the Barça side that began last Saturday’s Clásico defeat to Real Madrid, Antoine Griezmann comes in for Ousmane Dembélé in attack. Athletic finally enjoy a spell of possession that lasts more than just a few seconds. Now we’ll try to make sure we finish the season as well as possible. As well as overtaking Telmo Zarra’s Copa del Rey final goals record, Lionel Messi has tonight brought up 30 Barcelona goals in all competitions for the 13th season in a row. Berenguer fells Pedri, bringing an abrupt end to the midfielder's progress towards the Athletic area. The Basques have lost their last five Copa finals, with three of those defeats coming against Barcelona in a six-year period between 2009 and 2015. Welcome to our live-text coverage of the 2021 Copa del Rey final, as 30-time tournament winners Barcelona do battle with 23-time tournament winners … Barça came out like a battering ram in the second half, demolishing Athletic’s defense and creating chance after chance. Defeat in two cup finals in two weeks would, in the words of the great Jimmy Bullard, be a real kick in the goolies for Marcelino’s men. We're back up and running at the Estadio de la Cartuja. Para poder comentar debes estar He scampers towards the left-hand byline and cuts the ball back across goal, but it's too close to Ter Stegen, who grabs hold. But in general you have to highlight the performance of the whole team.”, “I feel really happy for these players, who needed this; it’d been a little while since we won a trophy.”, “We’re going to do everything we can to get Leo to stay.”, “Ronald is doing very well, working with real dedication, and you can see the players appreciate what he’s doing. Most recently and most painfully, though, Athletic were beaten in the postponed 2020 final against regional rivals Real Sociedad earlier this month, Mikel Oyarzabal’s second-half penalty giving La Real their first Copa since 1987. We had a run of 19 games without losing, we lose one match and I need to talk about my future. Barça made a good start to the half, with Frenkie De Jong hitting the post in the 5th minute as the Blaugrana showed real intent to attack and score early on. Genuinely not sure whether Athletic have completed a single pass yet. “We knew that Athletic always play the same way. Athletic lost to Real Sociedad 1-0. Two minutes of time added on at the Estadio de la Cartuja. April 2021. With just hours to spare until kickoff, SPORT claim that Koeman will go for the 3-5 … It’s special being captain of this club, of this team. 04.03.2021 14:31. They give it back to Barça before long, though, and back come Ronald Koeman's men at the Basques. Dani Alves speaks out against proposed Super League, The former Barcelona player speaks out on his old clubs’ decision to join a new competition, Superleague: Barca, Real Madrid presidents not required to consult members on decision to join, Barcelona feels “calm” about Lionel Messi’s contract renewal, Koeman to get a second season leading Barcelona. Again Barça's players suggest to the referee that it might be an idea to get his cards out - indeed, Messi gives him a real piece of his mind when he gets back up - but Martínez Munuera is unmoved. Solo por participar en esta edición de la Copa… Copa del Rey 2020/2021: Aktuelle Meldungen, Termine und Ergebnisse, Tabelle, Mannschaften, Torjäger. Messi is again fouled by Dani García, this time right on the edge of the box. 91 375 25 00, updated look at the Copa records of the competition's most successful teams, two points behind leaders Atlético Madrid, a look at the Copa records of the most successful sides in the history of Spain's domestic cup. Barcelona have cemented their status as the Copa del Rey's most decorated club with tonight's victory over Athletic Club. Dest cuts in from the right, roves into the box and, having carved out a yard or two of shooting space, pulls his effort just wide of the near post. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. Tonight would be a rather good time for Barça to buck that particular trend. No place even on the bench for either Riqui Puig or summer signing Miralem Pjanic. Welcome to our live-text coverage of the 2021 Copa del Rey final, as 30-time tournament winners Barcelona do battle with 23-time tournament winners Athletic Club in what will be the sides’ ninth meeting in the fixture. As I mentioned in my introduction, tonight's Copa del Rey final pits the competition's two most decorated clubs against each other in Seville. Messi scores 2 as Barcelona routs Bilbao to win Copa del Rey (1:28) Lionel Messi's double puts the finishing touches on a 4-0 win for Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final. Íñigo Martínez fires a free-kick into the Barcelona wall from 25 yards or so out. Barça have one hand on their 31st Copa del Rey, and deservedly so. Athletic may be the Copa’s second-most decorated club behind only Barça, but they haven’t won the trophy in 37 years now - not since beating the Blaugrana in a Bernabéu final chiefly memorable for ending up in a humongous punch-up. "This is not over, this is just the beginning!" Athletic have spent most of the half chasing the ball and have had considerably fewer attacking moments than Barça, but would have a goal to show for themselves had Íñigo Martínez's shot from Alex Berenguer's dead-ball delivery been a few inches to the right. Barcelona have won the 2021 Copa del Rey and are Spanish Cup champions for the 31st time in their history thanks to a spectacular 4-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in Seville. Broadcast info - Athletic Club vs Barcelona. If you're not sure how you can tune into tonight's Copa del Rey final on the telly, we recommend you take a look at our guide on how and where to watch. Barcelona lead! Hello and welcome to the live blog for the 2021 Copa del Rey final between Athletic Club and Barcelona which kicks off at 21:30 CET. I know before the game what will happen if we win and if we don't win. Messi dinks a lovely ball into Mingueza's run into the box, before advancing into the area to collect the return. Alba crosses from the left, Messi stretches but can't connect, but it runs through to De Jong to head home at the back post!