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Barcelona only entered the Copa del Rey in the round of 32, where they convincingly beat UD Barbastro to book a place in the quarterfinals.
Tomorrow they will return to action in the competition, this time in a single-leg knockout match against Real Betis.
In the Montjuic match, Barcelona will host the team they tied with last month. Besides, The Green and White They have been on a good run in recent weeks with seven consecutive unbeaten matches until their loss to Real Valladolid last weekend.
Manuel Pellegrini’s team reached the round of 16 after a tough battle against Huesca, where they won 1-0 thanks to a goal from Isco. The game against Barcelona, needless to say, will be a much bigger blockbuster.
Barça Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Barcelona-Real Betis.
Aiming for the next star
After a trophyless season last time out, Barcelona broke their title drought by winning the Spanish Super Cup last weekend and did it in the best way possible.
After all, it is not every day that the team can boast of lifting the title by directly beating their archrivals. Being a 5-2 hammering only makes the win even more special.
However, with the feeling of being crowned champion, Barcelona has no time to celebrate, as it must press the reset button and focus on the goal ahead. It’s time to look ahead to the next trophy up for grabs, especially since this is a knockout event.
The onus is on the coach and the veterans to bring the team back down to earth and quell the euphoria, and a big part of how Barcelona perform tomorrow will depend on whether the players are still hungover from Sunday’s victory.
After all, Real Betis is a daunting opponent that created problems for Barcelona not long ago. Therefore, the team must go out to seek revenge and not give up on The Verdiblancos.
The question of rotation
Barcelona has the advantage of playing at home against Real Betis ahead of tomorrow’s clash. However, it is the visitors who have the best feelings from their last match.
Barcelona and Betis faced each other at the end of last year at the Benito Villamarín and the match did not go as Hansi Flick had planned.
His team took a goal lead in the first half, but soon conceded the equalizer after Frenkie de Jong conceded an unnecessary penalty. They then took the lead again in the 82nd minute, but conceded the tie in extra time.
Having lost points to the green and white men just over a month ago, Flick must weigh his options and decide to what extent he plans to rotate the team in the cup clash.
Iñaki Peña will start in goal due to the suspension of Wojciech Szczesny, while Ronald Araujo will take the place of Íñigo Martínez. However, barring that, the coach may not be looking to make drastic changes to their dynamic.
Tomorrow’s cup match is a direct eliminator and, therefore, a must-win for Barcelona. The top three are likely to remain unchanged, but there is a chance Gavi will be benched for Dani Olmo or Fermín López.
All eyes on Araujo
The saga over Ronald Araujo’s future has taken a strange turn in recent weeks and it is becoming increasingly clear that the player is looking to move to Juventus.
At first, it seemed strange that the captain of a high-flying Barcelona team would want to move to the Old Lady. However, it has now come to light that it was his entourage who kept him in the dark about Barcelona’s renewal proposals and generated misunderstandings.
Íñigo Martínez’s injury is indeed a big blow for the Catalans, but it is also a timely reminder to Araujo of how valuable he is in Flick’s plans. In addition, it guarantees you a tenured position for at least a month and enough time to consolidate your place.
Araujo will thus start tomorrow in the place of the Basque warrior in what will be the first of many opportunities that will be presented to him in the coming weeks.
All eyes will be on his performance, commitment to the badge and body language because that will speak volumes about his internal battle and whether he will remain at the club. Barcelona needs him and hopes that tomorrow’s game will help him change his mind.
