Barcelona overtakes Valencia and guarantees place in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey
Away from home, Ferrán Torres scores a hat-trick in the first half, Fermín extends the lead, and Yamal scores one with a pass from Raphinha
CATALAN RUN OVER
Mestalla witnessed a historic victory this Thursday. Barcelona secured the last spot in the Copa del Rey semi-finals with a 4-0 win in the first half and a 5-0 win in the final score. Ferrán Torres scored a hat-trick, and Fermín Lopez and Lamine Yamal extended their lead. Hansi Flick’s team joins Atlético de Madrid, Real Madrid and Real Sociedad in the semi-finals of the Cup. The draw to define the matches will be on February 12.
THREE GOALS + TRIBUTE
Ferrán Torres had a great day this Thursday. A product of Valencia’s youth system and a striker for the team until 2020, the number 7 scored three times in the first half at Mestalla. As a sign of respect, the player did not celebrate the goals, but held up his shirt with a message: “We will not forget Valencia” . The phrase refers to the floods that devastated the country at the end of 2024 and left hundreds of victims and homeless.
HOW WAS THE GAME?
Barcelona played the ball beautifully at Mestalla and dominated the entire match. Long balls were the club’s strong point and led to the first four goals. Just two minutes in , Álex Balde launched a pass, Ferrán Torres received it behind the defense, controlled it and hit a low shot into the back of the net. Fifteen minutes later , Raphinha received the pass from a distance inside the area and passed it to Yamal who hit the post with a shot. Ferrán played as a center forward and took advantage of the rebound to extend the lead.
The third long ball came from Eric García, who sent the ball to Fermín López in the 22nd minute. The midfielder received the ball face to face with the goalkeeper, flicked it over him and shot into the empty net. To complete the hat-trick, in the 29th minute , Pedri crossed from the middle to the edge of the area. Raphinha played pivot and controlled the ball for Ferrán Torres to shoot from outside the area and find the left corner.
The pressure in attack did not have as much effect in the second half, in the 13th minute , and Barça only scored one more goal. Lamine Yamal closed the score with a pass from Raphinha . The Brazilian opened up on the right with the young Spaniard, who controlled the ball and hit it straight without much force. The goalkeeper was following the ball, but it deflected and went past the defender into the back of the net.
