Barcelona Player Ratings vs. Atletico Madrid: Valiant Copa del Rey Comeback Falls Short
-06ad2d29b37d2cca1a44008a56289260.png "Roberto Casillas")
Barcelona defeated Atlético Madrid 3–0 on Tuesday night, falling just shy of overturning a four-goal first-leg disadvantage and suffering a painful elimination in the Copa del Rey semifinals.
Inside an absolutely rocking Camp Nou, Barcelona started the game full of energy and intensity and strikes from Marc Bernal plus a penalty in added time from Raphinha sent the hosts into the break with their mission halfway complete.
Bernal completed his brace in the second half to get Barça within touching distance of a miracle. Hansi Flick’s side pushed until the bitter end with more heart and desire than quality, as exhaustion began to play a major factor.
In the end, the mountain was just a little to steep to climb and Barcelona have relinquished their Copa Del Rey crown—the first domestic trophy they have failed to win in the Flick era. Still, it was a commendable effort from a resilient side that, ironically, only have themselves to blame for the elimination after their dreadful first leg performance.
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Winners And Losers
Winners
Following a subpar showing in the first leg, Lamine Yamal answered the call and was fantastic in the second leg, toying with Matteo Ruggeri, Ademola Lookman and whoever dared mark him, all game. The teenager was subject to intense criticism following the last match, with many saying he has failed to deliver consistently on the big occasion. This time, Yamal spearheaded the quest that nearly turned a seemingly impossible mission into reality.
Perhaps even better than Yamal was the sensational showing from fellow 18-year-old Marc Bernal. It’s not an exaggeration to say that this could’ve been the midfielder’s breakout game. He showed tremendous character and dominated alongside Pedri against Atléti’s midfield, whilst also being decisive in attack, scoring his first professional brace in a high-stakes game.
Pau Cubarsí has been on the receiving end of plenty of criticism for his drop in form this season, which has contributed to Barça’s defensive woes. In the second leg, the young defender played with a maturity beyond his tender age, shutting-down Atléti’s dangerous attackers even as he grew tired late on and showcasing why he’s considered as one of the best defensive prospects in the sport.
Losers
Both of Barcelona’s regular starting fullbacks, Jules Koundé and Alejandro Balde, left the pitch with what seemed like muscular injuries. The Frenchman was replaced by the Spaniard just 13 minutes into the contests and Balde then had to be replaced in tears just past the 70th minute.
As upsetting as the Copa del Rey elimination is, the injuries to two started might be just as bad for Flick and Co.
Barcelona Player Ratings vs. Atlético Madrid (4-2-3-1)
GK: Joan García—8.0: Barely had to intervene but stood his ground brilliantly, when Antoine Griezmann had a golden opportunity to bury Barcelona while the second leg was scoreless.
RB: Jules Koundé—6.5: The frenetic pace of the opening minutes was too much for the Frenchman, who exited the pitch after 12 minutes with an injury.
CB: Pau Cubarsí—8.1: Arguably his best performance of the season. Looked confident pressing to generate turnovers and interceptions but also had key interventions defending transitions, all whilst threading a handful of line-breaking passes.
CB: Gerard Martín—7.8: Bravely spent the majority of the game playing inside Atlético’s halfway line, pressing forward while also intervening with character whenever he was tasked with defending in space.
LB: João Cancelo—8.5: Had a very positive start with a couple getting the better of Marcos Llorente to place some menacing crosses. Switched sides after Koundé’s injury and his influence didn’t drop, whipping a beautiful cross for Bernal to score his second.
DM: Marc Bernal—9.2: Frenkie de Jong wasn’t missed at all and it was all due to Bernal’s mature display, rarely misplacing a pass, stealing possession in Atlético’s half and scoring the opener. Johnny Cardoso spent the entire game chasing his shadow.
CM: Pedri—8.9: Simply sensational. He quarterbacked Barcelona’s attacks from the start and tirelessly covered ground to help out in whatever necessary. His darting, box-crashing run late in the first half resulted in a penalty for Barça’s second.
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RW: Lamine Yamal—9.2: Although he was marked tightly and routinely forced to receive the ball far from the penalty area, he was still scandalously good. His assist for Barça’s opener was a thing of beauty but he easily could’ve had a couple more.
AM: Fermín López—7.0: Far from his most influential showing as he was perhaps the least involved Barça attacker. Still, he slid in a clever and quality first-time pass to Pedri that resulted in a penalty that Raphinha buried.
LW: Raphinha—8.6: Energetic as always leading Barça’s high press, but he lacked poise in his decision making and overall quality with the final action. That all changed, though, when he calmly converted his penalty just before the break.
ST: Ferran Torres—6.2: Could’ve done better as he squandered a couple of chances that, although not easy, should’ve at least forced Juan Musso into saves. Struggled overall.
SUB: Alejandro Balde (13’ for Koundé)—7.3: Came in after Koundé’s injury and did a solid job before he suffered an injury himself and exited the pitch in tears.
SUB: Dani Olmo (64’ for Torres)—6.5: Didn’t make an the desired impact off the bench and was lucky not to get sent off after two very poor challenges.
SUB: Marcus Rashford (64’ for López)—6.5: Made a couple of nice runs down the flank but his crosses couldn’t find a way to the wanted destination.
SUB: Ronald Araújo (71’ for Balde)—6.0: Entered the game to play as a makeshift striker but didn’t get the service required to be the hero.
Subs not used: Diego Kochen (GK), Wojciech Szczęsny (GK), Marc Casadó, Tommy Marques, Roony Bardghji.
What the Ratings Tell Us
- Marc Bernal is blossoming into the player Flick believed he would be from the moment he arrived in the Blaugrana dugout. The teenager has started three straight games and looks better with every passing match. Fully recovered from his ACL injury, he’ll be key in the coming weeks with Frenkie de Jong out injured.
- João Cancelo was nothing short of brilliant for a second consecutive appearance. The winter signing looks back to his best, much needed good news for Barça with both of Flick’s top-choice fullbacks leaving the pitch injured.
- Barcelona officially have a striker problem. Ferran Torres was nowhere near good enough and with Robert Lewandowski injured, Ronald Araújo played the final 20 minutes of the game leading the line. The center forward position has failed to have a signifiant impact recently.
The Numbers That Explain Barcelona’s Near Heroic Effort
- Barcelona had four clear chances to zero from the visitors, mustering 21 total shots to Atléti’s seven.
- Atlético Madrid only had two shots on target—one in each half—resulting in a 0.68 xG, compared to the nine Barça looks on goal that generated 3.09 xG.
- Barcelona were awarded 15 corners to Atléti’s zero. Especially late in the game, the hosts bombarded the visitors with set-pieces to no avail.
- Yamal had 14 successful dribbles against Atléti—the most of any player has completed in a single game this term. He also had more touches in the opposition’s box (11) by himself than the entirety of Atlético Madrid mustered on the night (10).
Statistic | Barcelona | Atlético Madrid |
|---|---|---|
Possession | 71% | 29% |
Expected Goals (xG) | 3.08 | 0.68 |
Total Shots | 21 | 7 |
Shots on Target | 9 | 2 |
Big Chances | 4 | 0 |
Passing Accuracy | 90% | 74% |
Fouls Committed | 9 | 7 |
Corners | 15 | 0 |
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