Barça's Copa quest continues at Racing: El Sardinero braced for first v second tier showdown
Fresh from Supercopa glory, Barcelona head to Racing Santander in Copa del Rey last-16. Flick ponders rotation with packed schedule looming.
Barcelona ride the wave of Supercopa success into Cantabria tonight, facing a tricky Copa del Rey last-16 tie against Racing Santander - the Segunda División leaders hosting La Liga’s top dogs in a proper David v Goliath cup clash.
Barça on cloud nine
The Catalan giants are absolutely flying at the moment. Nine straight wins in La Liga and fresh from giving Real Madrid a proper spanking in Saudi Arabia to lift the Supercopa. The trophy cabinet’s already getting a bit of polish this season, and Hansi Flick’s men are dead set on defending their Copa crown to boot.
Last season’s Copa triumph was one of only two pieces of silverware the Blaugrana managed to bag, so there’s plenty of motivation to keep this cup run going. They dispatched Guadalajara in the previous round, but Racing represent a significant step up in quality.
Rotation, rotation, rotation
Flick’s got a right old headache with fixture congestion:
- Copa del Rey tonight
- Real Sociedad away on Sunday
- Champions League resuming next week against Slavia Prague
The German gaffer’s expected to ring the changes across all departments tonight. Eric García, Koundé, Fermín and Raphinha could all be given a breather, though young Joan García might have to wait for his chance between the sticks with Flick suggesting Ter Stegen could keep his place.
Ronald Araujo, who made his comeback in Jeddah after a month out due to mental health issues, might get some minutes. Portuguese defender Cancelo, unveiled Tuesday for his second Barça stint, trained yesterday and could feature in the squad.
Racing’s cup bonus
The Santander outfit earned this glamour tie by knocking out Villarreal 2-1 in the previous round - no mean feat. However, the club’s brass have made it crystal clear that promotion from Segunda is the bread and butter this season, with Sunday’s clash against Las Palmas taking priority.
José Alberto’s side will be without injured striker Villalibre, but Arana and Pablo Ramón return to contention and could start. Whether the gaffer goes full strength or mixes it up remains to be seen.
El Sardinero will be absolutely rammed tonight, though the ‘house full’ signs have already been dusted off a few times this season as Racing push for a return to the top flight after more than a decade away from Spanish football’s top table.