A goal from Argentine Leo Messi and another from Dutchman Frenkie De Jong gave Barcelona a pass to the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey in Vallecas, where the Barça team had to come back against Rayo, from the Second Division, who went ahead in the marker with a goal from Fran García.
After two penalty games, Leo Messi returned to the eleven in Vallecas to form in the Barça attack together with the French Antoine Griezmann and the Portuguese Francisco Trincao and his was the first time with a free-kick crossed from the right that Stole cleared under Stole Dimitrievski.
The Macedonian goalkeeper was one of the great protagonists of the first half with his saves, one of them saving in a heads-up with the Portuguese Francisco Trincao, whose clearance fell at the feet of Riqui Puig and the youth squad’s shot touched Iván Martos before going to the right post.
Before, Barcelona had already warned with another very clear occasion that began with a cross from the left by Júnior Firpo that the Dutchman Frenkie De Jong finished over Dimitrievski to crash the ball on the crossbar.
The Madrid team based its strategy on trying to cancel the participation of Riqui Puig and Sergio Busquets rather than depending on Messi, who was very unassisted in some phases of the first half.
In the second half Messi was much more decisive and began to show it from the beginning with a lateral foul that, after 48 minutes, shot closed to the far post and the ball went to the crossbar.
Rayo, without pressure, advanced his positioning line in the second half and taking advantage of some gaps that Barcelona left as a result of his nervousness, he began to worry him.
In one of those approaches Álvaro García received the ball on the run down the right side and, on the back line, he put a center that Neto did not manage to clear well, he left the ball dead in the small area and Fran García sent it to the mesh background.
The joy was short-lived for Rayo because seven minutes later Messi appeared when his team needed him most. De Jong put a ball to the left for Griezmann, who started the race and put a center to the heart of the area that the Argentine finished on goal.
Barcelona turned the score around with a slate play that Messi started with a pass into the hole to Jordi Alba, who as soon as he received it put a cross into the small area that pushed De Jong to goal.
Barcelona’s second goal left Rayo touched, who still did not resign himself to being eliminated and with more heart than success ended up besieging his rival, whom he put in his area until the last play.
– Data sheet:
1 – Rayo Vallecano: Dimitrievski; Mario Hernández (Advíncula, m.84), Saveljich, Catena, Fran García; Comesaña, Trejo; Andrés Martín (Antoñín, m.70), Montiel (Álvaro, m.56), Martos (Isi Palazón, m.84); and Qasmi (Mario Suárez, m.70).
2 – Barcelona: Net; Mingueza, Araujo, Lenglet, Júnior Firpo (Jordi Alba, m.67); De Jong, Busquets, Riqui Puig (Pedri, m.67); Trincao (Demebélé, m.67), Messi and Griezmann (Braithwaite, m.85).
Goals: 1-0: M.62 Fran García; 1-1: M.69 Messi; 1-2: M.79 De Jong.
Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández (Balearic Committee). He admonished Comesaña (m.9), Trejo (54) and Mario Suárez (89), from Rayo; and Koeman (59), Dembélé (73) and Braithwaite (89), from Barcelona.
Incidents: match corresponding to the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey played behind closed doors at the Vallecas stadium in Madrid. A minute’s silence was observed in memory of Gregorio Llorente, founder of the Peña Rayista El Cencerro, who passed away this week. EFE (HN).