Osasuna Eliminated From Copa Del Rey by Barcelona

The Copa del Rey, which translates as the King's Cup, although it is usually known as the Spanish Cup, has been going since before the creation of the Spanish league and while it is not seen as prestigious an award amongst major teams, there are often some shocks caused by teams from the lower leagues.

FC Barcelona has just qualified for the quarterfinals after beating Osasuna. In the home leg they won 4-0 meaning almost certain elimination for Osasuna, and in the away leg they beat them 2-1 despite Osasuna going a goal up in the first half. That is an exciting prospect for fans of Spanish football as it means that Barcelona will face Real Madrid in the next round, two more "clasicos" to take place in January.

With the Barcelona players looking like they were taking it easy after the near certainty of their quarterfinal qualification it seemed like no much would be happening in the match, which took place in freezing, foggy conditions and no doubt they were all looking forward to finishing the match and some warmth.

Quarter of an hour in Fontas received a nasty looking injury and was stretchered off and Pep Guardiola brought on Abidal in his place. Osasuna didn't really look as if they were going to do much either but at the end of the first half they started to threaten. The result was Osasuna going a goal up at the end of the first half, scored by Lekic.

When play resumed after the break the Catalans seemed to be working in a higher gear and the increased energy quickly paid off when Alexis scored from an Adriano cross to equalise.

Soon after Guardiola took Alexis off and replaced him with Lionel Messi, who charged about the pitch in his usual fashion; and Pedro went off in favour of Busquets after seeming to suffer a thigh strain. Then Messi set up Barcelona's winning goal in the 72nd minute from inside the area allowing Sergi Roberto to put the ball past the Osasuna keeper for the final goal of the match.

The quarterfinals take place on the 18th and 25th of January, with the Bernabeu round first followed by the Nou Camp round a week later. Last year the two clubs faced each other in the final, which was eventually won by Real Madrid, the only trophy taken by them last year.

Read the full Barcelona v Osasuna match report at Simply Barcelona Tickets, or buy Barcelona FC tickets from us for matches at the Nou Camp.

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FC Barcelona Beats Osasuna in the Copa Del Rey

FC Barcelona came a step closer to the Copa del Rey semifinals last night after a 4-0 win against Osasuna in the Nou Camp. Bother Cesc Fabregas and Lionel Messi scored two goals each, the latter having been expected to miss the match due to flu and sitting most of the match out.

Barcelona quickly got into their stride, unlike Ream Madrid the night before who had gone two goals down in the first half, prompting coach Jose Mourinho to tell the press that he would have changed all 11 players at half time if he'd been able. While Real Madrid got back into the game to win 3-2 against Malaga, Osasuna never really got into the match at all, with barely 20 percent possession.

The first goal came from Cesc, set up by Alves and Xavi and once again new boy Cuenca showed that he has some real potential for the future. Xavi set up Cesc's second goal inside 20 minutes after a period of almost relentless attack. Osasuna must have felt they had no chance. It looked as they Barcelona should improve their score throughout the first half, but the break came with a 2-0 scoreline in Barcelona's favour.

The second half started with Barcelona on the attack and were unlucky not to have been awarded a penalty. On three occasions it looked like Barça should be awarded a penalty but the referee thought otherwise. However, Lionel Messi, who had asked Pep Guardiola to let him play after responding well to treatment for his flu, came on and the remainder of the match was his.

His first goal came in the 74th minute when he headed the ball into the net after Osasuna failed to clear it from their area; Messi was ecstatic, as were his fellow players. And in injury time there was time for one last goal as Xavi found Messi on the side of the box - another goal for the Argentine.

Following the FC Barcelona v Osasuna match Osasuna has effectively given up on the Copa del Rey, the coach stating that they'll concentrate on their league matches. Assuming Barcelona makes it through to the quarter finals - and it is looking certain that they will at the moment with such a large goal difference - there is every likelihood that they will face Real Madrid. The quarter finals take place at the end of January and so football fans may well have another "clasico" to look forward to.

Read more about FC Barcelona v Osasuna and follow Barça's Copa del Rey progress at Simply Barcelona Tickets. There you can read match reports and news as well as buy Barcelona tickets for matches at the Nou Camp.

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